


A Moment of Quiet Conversation

by JackONeillisTheMan



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Family Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Gen, M/M, Romantic Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-24
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:22:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 51
Words: 108,711
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26625121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JackONeillisTheMan/pseuds/JackONeillisTheMan
Summary: Julie and Luke talk about how he was the one who introduced her to rock.  Then just fluff, more and more fluff.
Relationships: Alex & Julie Molina & Luke Patterson & Reggie, Alex & Willie (Julie and The Phantoms), Julie Molina & Luke Patterson, Julie Molina/Luke Patterson
Comments: 631
Kudos: 1449





	1. Part Un

**Author's Note:**

> This one has already been posted to Fanfiction.net, I just set up this account. However, since there's an actual JatP category/tag here, I figured I should go ahead and join in the fun here also. This was supposed to be a one-shot, but, well, smh.

A Moment of Quiet Conversation - Part Un

(Previously posted only on Fanfiction.net- now it will be here too.)

\-----------------------------------------------------------------

It was a few days after the concert at the Orpheum, and the completely insane whatever it was that allowed Julie to touch the guys. She came home after school to find Luke alone in the studio, guitar pick in his mouth, scribbling lyrics and notes in his journal and occasionally strumming a chord on his acoustic guitar. 

“Where are Alex and Reggie?”

He jumped a little, he had really been focused when she walked in. “Um, they went to look for Willie, Reggie and I didn’t think Alex should go alone.”

Julie smiled, her boys were really good at looking out for each other. “Soooo, what are you writing?”

Luke actually seemed to blush a little, his hand coming up to rub the back of his neck in a slightly nervous gesture. “Nothing much, just messing around.” He quickly flipped his journal shut and changed the subject, “How was school? Don’t you usually go and do your homework before visiting us out here?”

“Yeah, but I heard you playing and when I saw you were alone I thought it might be a good time to talk to you about something.” She came over to the couch and he shifted over and set his guitar down so he could give her his full attention. She looked a little nervous, or confused maybe, he couldn’t quite tell.

“You can always talk to me Julie, about anything.”

She looked down and twisted her hands in her lap for a moment, before lifting her head and locking eyes with him. “You wrote all those songs. The ones that Trevor Wilson took credit for.”

Lukes eyes flashed, angry for a second, but then they softened as he remembered what she had said back when they had found out about that. Those songs were important to her, and to her mom. “You said they were your introduction to rock music.”

“They were. And I have been thinking about how amazing they were and about how hard I was on you about wanting to get back at him, but I think I understand better now.” Julie took a deep breath and reached out to take Luke’s hand. “Those songs were incredible, and I need you to know exactly how much they meant to me. How much they are part of my memories of my mom and learning to love music the way she did. You did that.”

Luke was stunned. He hadn’t really thought through this part of her knowing the songs and what that meant. They had all been so upset and angry at Bobby then. He swallowed hard and cleared his throat, “Would you be willing to share some memories of her and the songs with me?”

Julie blinked back a few tears and nodded slowly, “Will you tell me about writing them?”

He gave her a sad smirk, “Anything for you Julie, you know that.”

They both let out a shaky laugh, remembering the last time he said those words to her.

A tear slid down her cheek as she let out a soft sniffle, and he couldn’t stand it anymore. Thank God he could touch her now. He reached over and wiped the tear away with his thumb, before slipping his arm around her shoulder and pulling her into his side on the couch, holding her close. He freed his other hand from hers and grabbed his journal off the table, flipping it open near the beginning, “Where do you want to start? Get Lost? Long Weekend? Or maybe Crooked Teeth? I know you want to know who was right about that one!" He raised an eyebrow at her and winked, “Alex and Reggie both thought it was about each other, but you’ll be the only one to know the truth!”

Julie giggled quietly and beamed a smile up at him before snuggling deeper into his side. Actually being able to finally feel him was incredible, and she never wanted it to stop. She tucked her head into his shoulder and told him, “Whatever you want, tell me about one and then I’ll tell you a story about my mom. We can trade off.” She looked up into his eyes, and almost forgot to breathe, they were so close and so intense. 

“Julie…” He whispered.

“Just don’t stop holding me, please,” she whispered back.

His gaze sharpened a bit, then softened, and he leaned back into the corner of the couch, setting his journal in his lap. He lifted his hand and cupped her cheek, giving her a gentle kiss on her forehead before resting his head against hers and sharing the journal between them.

“Well, it started out like this…..”


	2. Part Deux

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reggie and Alex react.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part Deux

Alex and Reggie popped into the studio, and froze. Julie and Luke were curled up on the couch fast asleep, Luke's journal open on the coffee table in front of them.

Reggie smiled in triumph, "I knew it!" 

"Shhhh! Come on!" Alex glared at him fiercely, and gestured out to the driveway.

They popped out and Reggie pouted at Alex, "Why did we have to leave, this is prime leverage to get him to admit the 'CHEMISTRY' that he keeps denying!"

"Because I wouldn't want them to wake up and accuse us of spying. Julie can be scary. And you know Luke would take her side, since we would be spying." 

"I guess..." Reggie frowned in thought. "I know!" He popped away.

"Wait! What are you...?" Alex shook his head, exasperated.

Reggie had popped back in and snuck Julie's phone out of the side pocket of her backpack, taking a few pictures as proof. He popped back to Alex and grinned. "Got them!"

Alex rolled his eyes, but then actually looked at the pictures. Apparently whatever made them visible to people and cameras when they sang with Julie was working, because the pictures came out amazing. Alex gushed, "Awwww, that is adorable! Those two idiots should just admit everything so they can look that cute all the time."

Reggie beamed, "I'm going to make this second one her phone background!"

Alex nodded in enthusiastic approval.

Once this was done, Alex took the phone from Reggie and popped back in the studio to return it to Julie's bag, but decided to go in with the camera still ready to go. It was the best idea ever, he managed to get a shot of Luke, just having woken up and looking at Julie in his arms with the softest, most affectionate smile. Alex just slid the phone on the piano and left. Thank goodness Luke hadn't seen him!

He met up with Reggie in the driveway and they popped to the beach to hang out and give the other two some more time alone.

\-----------------

Luke was slowly waking up. It felt really strange, he was a ghost, and they didn't really sleep, so he was rather disconcerted. It was even stranger when he realized there was a warm body next to him, practically draped over his side in his arms. 'What... oh.' It was Julie, and she was snuggled into his side, still fast asleep. If he still had a heartbeat, he was sure it would be pounding. 'She was beautiful.' 

Luke smiled down at her, wishing he could stay in the moment forever. But she must have sensed his gaze, and she shifted a bit, before blinking her eyes open and meeting his. She froze, and her eyes widened in shock, "Did I fall asleep?" Her face flushed a little, seemingly a little embarrassed, and started to pull away and sit up.

Luke's frowned and tightened his arm around her, tucking her back into his side. "You don't have to move. I fell asleep too, just woke up a moment before you." His eyes sparkled and he added playfully, "Besides you told me not to stop holding you earlier, so I will need specific instructions that I'm allowed to let you go."

Julie caught her breath, and, not for the first time, thought about how criminally unfair it was for him to have such pretty eyes and that perfect smile. She couldn't help but smile dreamily back up at him. Waking up to his face was quite the experience, maybe she should pinch herself and make sure this wasn't a dream? Nah, she decided if it was then she didn't want to know.

"You can at least let me sit up so I can stretch," she told him, giggling softly.

He sighed dramatically, "Fine, I guess."

He reluctantly let go and they both sat up and stretched a bit. 

"You know, I don't think I've slept since I became a ghost, but I was definitely sleeping. I even had a dream."

Julie was taken aback, she had almost forgotten that he was a ghost. Stupid reality. "What did you dream?" She asked, curious. She would think about everything else later. 

"Well there were all these mirrors and my hair was all styled weird, and I was in kinda fancy clothes that I'd never seen before. You were there and we were dancing." His lips twisted as his eyes unfocused a little, and he looked quite proud, "We were pretty great, if I do say so myself." His expression went a bit more hazy, "We were singing this duet... it was really good..."

Her mouth had dropped open at his first words and she continued to gape at him. Her thoughts were in a whirl as he started to hum the chorus of the song that was in her daydream the week before. 'What was happening?! First they were solid to touch, and now Luke was sleeping and somehow sharing her dreams?! Because she had been dreaming about that song just now, too! She did agree with him, it WAS really good and it had been playing in her head almost whenever she was around him since the daydream. But time to think about that later.' Right now Julie was baffled at this development in his ghost-ness.

He finally came out of his own thoughts and called her name in concern, "Julie. Julie! Where was your head at?" He snorted a small laugh, "You look like you saw a ghost." 'Haha- _cough_ -ha.'

She snapped her head around to give him a withering look, "That was terrible."

Luke tried to get control of his widening smile, but really, he couldn't help but think, 'I just got to hang out with Julie alone and hear about her mom and tell her about my old songs, and THEN I even got to take a nap with her?! How can I NOT be happy right now?!' 

"Sorry, bad joke," he said with laughter still in his voice and no actual remorse.

Julie narrowed her eyes at him, but then she broke, bursting into loud laughter with him.

"That... _*haha*_..should NOT... _*wheeze*_..be that.. _*haha*gasp*_..funny!"

He couldn't help himself, and didn't THAT seem to be a constant thing, now that he could touch her. As his laughter slowly settled down he wrapped his arms around her in a soft hug as she calmed down as well.

They just sat there in comfortable silence for a few minutes, holding each other loosely.

Finally Julie sighed and pulled back slightly, "I'm so incredibly glad I can touch you now." She tensed, "All-all three of you, I mean." She kept her head down, squeezing her eyes shut and hoping he hadn't caught that.

He had, though. And as a huge grin spread across his face, which felt like it would never go away, he tugged her into a really tight hug and just said, "I feel exactly the same way."

  
They finally let go and Julie groaned as she remembered she still had to do her homework, glancing at the clock she also realized it was almost dinner time. "Well, I better get inside, my dad and Carlos will be looking for me."

"Okay. I'll see you later," he said, still grinning.

She beamed back at him, "Of course." 

When she turned to grab her bag something on the piano caught her eye. 'When did I take my phone out?' she wondered. 'Oh, well, it's right there, so I guess it doesn't matter.' She picked up her bag and her phone, and headed out the door. Only turning to wave at Luke one more time as she slipped out.

Luke waved back, before flopping down on his back across the couch again, grin still quite firmly in place.

\----------------

  
As Julie made it back to her room and tossed her bag on the bed, she unlocked her phone to check on any messages. She was not prepared. She stopped dead, in the middle of crawling onto her bed, and just.... stared. 

'How...what...holy.......we look so...so _HAPPY_.' 

She opened her camera roll, just to see if there were any more, and almost cried when she saw the last picture of Luke looking barely awake and smiling down at her sleeping on him. Having a actual photo of this amazing afternoon with Luke was priceless. She had a few tears in her eyes as she murmured to her self, "Alex and Reggie. They are getting some big, big hugs when I see them next."


	3. Part Trois

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Julie tells Flynn

A/N: So, one thing about me is that I love music, and sometimes I will hear a song on a show or in a movie and when I go to find it, I have been know to purchase the whole album just by listening to the song previews. However, I usually end up focusing on the song I found it for and so I have a bunch of music from albums that I haven't really listened to much. I was scrolling through my music library and saw one, "Huh, I'm going to put this in my Juke playlist and see what it's about when it comes up." Y'all. As soon as I heard it I knew it had to go in this story. I was trying to think how I would do it, but then I realized I had set up for it in Part One, WITHOUT KNOWING.

Teaser: The song is called "Eyes"

However, this part got away from me, I can't even explain. SO the part with the song will have to be Part Four or possibly Part Five, because SO MUCH decided to happen first. 

So here it is, Part Trois.

J&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&LJ&L

Julie was humming 'Perfect Harmony' as she got ready for school. 'Thank goodness it's Friday. I will have the whole weekend to write songs with Lu... the guys, yup, that's what I meant, the guys!' She blushed, even though she was alone. She really needed a reality check, Flynn needed to get here soon. Although... She could actually touch them now, and she did now have more proof of the way Luke and her were connected. Not that she would share anything personal that he told her about his early songs, but just generally how they had talked about them and about her mom. That could only help Flynn understand better. Then there were the pictures! She really had to catch the guys as soon as she could, Alex and Reggie deserved to know how much she appreciated the photos.

Flynn arrived, and they headed to school, Julie glancing at the studio as they passed, with a big dreamy smile. Flynn just shaking her head and rolling her eyes.

"Hey, before you start in again about him being a ghost, you have to hear what happened yesterday! It's not just that I can touch them now, he SLEPT." Julie filled Flynn in on everything and showed her the photos as they walked to school.

\-----------------------------------------------

School was school, she managed to get though it by transcribing the lyrics and notes of 'Perfect Harmony' that she could remember, she would need Luke to go over it, there were a few parts she just couldn't seem to fit correctly. If he remembered enough from his dream (which was still one of the weirdest things!) he could help her finish it, she was sure.

When she met up with Flynn to head home, Flynn once again shook her head at her in mock disapproval, "You really need to get it together. Your head is so far in the clouds today I'm surprised you haven't been tripping over things, and running into people right and left!"

"I'm just happy!"

Flynn's face turned serious immediately, "I know. It's the best thing I've seen in the last year, this even tops when you finally started playing music again. I don't know how it will work out, but I'm 100% Team Luke now." Her expression lightened, "Really, seeing that last photo of him looking at you was it for me. I talked about signs before, and I gotta say, that's the only sign I need. Boy has it BAD for you!"

Julie blushed, 'And wasn't she just doing that so _much_ lately. It was ridiculous!'

"Thanks Flynn! Do you want to come over tomorrow when we practice? I'm going to show Luke that song I was working on, and hopefully he can help me finish it tonight so you can hear it tomorrow."

"You know it girl! I can't wait to see the most watchable duet-ers I've ever seen sing a love song!"

\--------------------------------------------------------

Julie practically bounced into the studio after dropping her school bag in her room. "Guys! Reggie and Alex! Front and center, I need to talk to you!"

They glanced up from where they were lounging on the couch with Luke watching something on her laptop.

"Um, are we in trouble?"

"We're sorry for whatever it is!"

"What did they do Jules?" Luke was confused, they had actually been with him most of the day, when did they have time to annoy her?

"Just get over here you two!"

Poof!

Her annoyed look melted away and she basically lunged at them pulling them into a tight hug. They were both completely shocked, but quickly went ahead and hugged her back.

"You guys are the sweetest friends ever. I can't tell how much those pictures mean to me," she whispered just for them to hear.

"Ohhhhh, okay yeah, you are definitely welcome Julie!"

"It was my idea!" Reggie was so pleased that she liked them.

"Hey! What is this all about?!" Luke was a little irritated, he didn't want to be. He loved that Julie was so close to his friends, his FAMILY, but that apparently didn't mean he wasn't a little jealous seeing them getting a big Julie hug like that without him.

She stepped back from Reggie and Alex, smiling gratefully at them, "They just did me a favor, and I needed to thank them. I'll tell you about it later. Right now I have a song that I would really like you to help me finish."

He leapt off the couch, "Let's get to it then, you guys can just finish this without me." He gestured vaguely at the laptop, already walking over to grab his journal and guitar.

Julie couldn't help but giggle happily, a sound that hit Luke right in the chest, causing a slight pause in his actions. 'That might be the best sound ever,' he thought to himself.

"Let's go up to my room, if my dad asks I can tell him we're video chatting on my phone to write."

"Whatever you want, Julie."

Alex and Reggie snickered from where they were back on the couch, he was so gone over her.

\--------------------------------------------------------

Julie and Luke settled themselves in her room. Pulling her notebook out of her school bag, Julie cleared her throat a little nervously, "So there is something I need to tell you about first."

He immediately met her eyes, all of his focus on her, "You can tell me anything Jules."

She was flustered now, those eyes made it hard to think when they were staring into hers like that, and, wait... "Jules?"

Luke actually blushed, his cheeks flushing pink and his eyes widening in a bit of panic, "Um, I'm- I'm sorry is that... is that not okay?"

"NO!" She caught herself, "No. It's fine." She lowered her head for a moment, blushing herself, before looking back up and softly saying, "I like that you have a nickname for me."

Whoosh, he let out the breath he didn't realized he was holding, a grin threatening to break out. "Oo-kay, good."

They just stared at each other for a minute.

This time Luke cleared his throat, "So, you said you had something to tell me?"

'Oh, crap that's right.' Julie decided to just put it all out there, "Well, this song, I think you might already know it. Sort of." She gasped in a big gulp of air, hoping that telling him wasn't going to be totally embarrassing, "IhadadaydreamaboutyouandIimaginedusdancingtothissongandI'mprettysurethat'swhatyourdreamwasyesterday."

He just blinked at her, trying to process her words. "...Wait, so I dreamed about something you imagined and somehow also the actual song that you had come up with in your head?"

"Yes."

"That's- that's- I mean...I honestly don't know what that is."

"I don't either, but it is a really good song and I think we should do it."

"I- that's- I just- how...No, you know what, never mind. The song I dreamed about is really good and you're right we should do it. We'll just put a pin in the rest and think about it later," he said shaking his head in disbelief.

"Good, that's...good. So here's what I have written down of what I remember. You go first, 'Step into my world...'"

They spent the whole time before Carlos knocked on her door calling her to dinner putting their memories of the song together and adding another verse. Her daydream had felt like a shortened version of what it could be, but Luke's dream seemed to fill in the rest. After dinner they practiced with Alex and Reggie a few times, the guys just rolling their eyes at the heart eyes that were Luke and Julie the entire song.


	4. Part Quatre

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They play 'Perfect Harmony' for Flynn

A/N: Here's Part 4. There's a tiny teaser of part of the song I mentioned in the last chapter that is inspiring me at the end, but I still didn't quite make it there in this part. Also, the thing about Luke's songwriting came to me at like 3 am when I was trying to sleep, and now it's absolutely my HC. We see in the 'Unsaid Emily' flashback that he seemed to just write it all on his own, and then was just teaching it to the guys after it was done, so I choose to agree with what I have Reggie say about it in this.

\----------------------------------------------------------

Flynn showed up to watch practice mid-morning the next day, "Hey, y'all can start, I have arrived!"

"Hey Flynn," Julie looked up from her seat at the piano next to Luke where there were brainstorming new song ideas, before crinkling her brow in confusion at Flynn's expression. "What's wrong?"

"Um, Julie. Is Luke sitting next to you?"

Julie glanced at him by her side. "Yeah, why?"

"I can see him. And you guys aren't playing music right now."

Everyone's eyes went wide at this new development.

"What about us?" Alex spoke tentatively from across the room behind his drum set.

Flynn's head snapped around in shock, "Uh, yup, I can hear and see you too. What is going on?!"

"Wow, this is weird!" Reggie contributed.

"Okay, this is fine, this is going to be fine." Julie was breathing unevenly, things were changing so fast, what was happening?

"Hey, Jules, look at me. We'll figure it out, I promise," Luke cupped her cheek and turned her face to his, deliberately breathing slowly, raising his eyebrows and encouraging her to mirror him.

One breath... two... three...by four she was much calmer, "You're right we'll just have to start paying attention and experiment a little, like can anyone else see you, or is it only Flynn? We could ask Carlos, he knows about you. And then we should test if it only happens around me or if......"

Luke gently slid his hand over her mouth and shook his head with a fond smile. "We'll make a plan. But for now let's show Flynn our new song. It's why she's here after all."

She blinked, and sighed a little as he pulled back and stood up to go pick up his guitar. As she got up as well to head over the the electric keyboard, she caught Flynn's raised eyebrow and deeply amused smirk. "Shut up!" she hissed as she passed her, going to get settled and adjust her microphone.

Flynn just laughed, they were too cute. She glanced over at Alex and Reggie, seeing them nodding at her with amused smiles of agreement. 

\----------------------------------------------------------

"So, this is our new song, it's a little different, but I think you'll like it. It's called 'Perfect Harmony.'" With that Julie tipped her head at Luke and he began, his seemingly effortless guitar playing impressing Flynn all over again. But then he started to sing. She almost involuntarily gasped as his gaze went right to Julie, locking their eyes. Flynn was just sitting near them, but it was like the temperature rose ten degrees, it was intense.

Julie slipped her mic out of the stand and rose to meet him, never breaking eye contact. Her voice picked up alone after his for a couple lines before the song really started to swell with Reggie and Alex layering in their bass guitar and drums, respectively. Then they were singing together and it was like their voices were made to blend.

'This is incredible.' Flynn was in awe, and almost a little embarrassed as the song went on, she turned her focus to Alex and Reggie to see what they thought. They also appeared a little disconcerted, like they weren't sure they should be watching this either. Luke and Julie had kept inching closer and closer through the song, and as it wrapped up, they were standing so close that Flynn was a little baffled that Luke was even still able to play his guitar.

The song finally faded out and Flynn jumped up, clapping loudly, making Julie and Luke both jerk back, and blush. 

"Oookay! Guys that was excellent, but me? I need some water and maybe a little snack. Julie." She stepped forward and caught Julie's arm, dragging her toward the door, "let's take a quick break and then reconvene in like an hour! Cool? Cool." And they were gone.

\----------------------------------------------------------

"Soooooo," Alex ran a hand through his hair, "What exactly was that? You guys were intense when we played through it last night, but that was, whoa."

Reggie crossed his arms and just grinned, "OOZING CHEMISTRY!"

Alex grimaced, he hated that word, but to be fair it was an accurate description.

Luke just stood there staring into space for a moment. Then he was almost a blur as he yanked off his electric guitar, quickly replacing it with his acoustic and snatching up his journal and a pen. He then just popped up to the loft, muttering something about, "That's it, and then if I move that before that, and switch up that chord...."

"Uh-oh." Reggie turned to Alex, "We won't be practicing anymore today will we?"

"Nope. No way, although he seems to have already had this one simmering, so it might not take too long."

"We better go explain to Julie, so she doesn't come back and try to interrupt him."

"Good idea."

\----------------------------------------------------------

They popped into the kitchen, startling Julie and causing her to give a slight yelp, Flynn looking around, "What?!"

"Wait, now you can't see them?" Julie forgot her annoyance at Alex and Reggie, distracted by this discrepancy.

"No, I guess not. Maybe it's only when they're in the studio?"

"Huh, then what if...."

"Excuse me Julie, but this is kinda important." 

"Oh, sorry Reggie, is something wrong?" Julie asked, curiosity flooding her as she took in their hesitant faces.

Alex was the one that replied, "No, not wrong, just, Luke has gone into his songwriting zone, and it's best to leave him alone until he finishes. So no more practice today, we don't think."

"Yeah, it can last anywhere from an hour or two, that was 'Now or Never' all the way to a few days, that was for 'Unsaid Emily.' It's kinda his superpower." Reggie shrugged, his hands spread wide in a gesture of 'I don't know how it works but it does.'

"Oh." Julie's face flashes with a bit of hurt at the idea of him writing without her.

Flynn still can't see them, she just stands there with a questioning look on her face, as Alex quickly reaches forward to touch Julie's arm, surprisingly she feels it. "Don't worry, he's always really interested in any opinions and feedback once he's done, although if we're honest the songs are usually so good they don't need much adjusting. I know for a fact he loves writing with you, with us too," he pulls his hand back, waving it between himself and Reggie, "It's just that this is sometimes his process and what comes out of it is usually so good it's better just to leave him to it."

Julie tilted her head, thinking out loud, "So it's sort of like when I sometimes have a song verse that I just NEED to write out for my dream box, just with a whole song at one time?"

"Yeah, that sounds about right!" Reggie pointed at her, pleased that she seemed to understand.

"All right, just please come find me as soon as he's done, you've got me really intrigued about what his new song might be."

"Absolutely!" The guys chorused and disappeared, heading to the beach so they'll be out of Luke's way.

\----------------------------------------------------------

"Uh, Julie what was that about?" Flynn was waiting impatiently, since she could only hear Julie's side of the conversation.

"Sorry Flynn, they just said Luke was hit with some inspiration and he's 'in the zone' writing a new song and we should avoid interrupting him. They said the songs are usually really good, so not to mess up his process."

Flynn was a little skeptical, maybe they were just trying to help him have some time and space after the scorching performance he and Julie just gave, but decided to go along with it. "Well, let's go to your room and get some of our homework done...."

They looked at each other for a moment, then burst out laughing, "You mean watch movies all afternoon?"

"Of course!" Flynn hooked her arm around Julie's and they headed upstairs with their snacks.

\----------------------------------------------------------

Back in the studio loft, Luke was scribbling down lyrics, crossing them out and rewriting at a furious pace, still mumbling to himself and occasionally strumming a chord or two on his guitar. 

'Can it be a reason to break the walls down, 

making me believe in this thing we found...'


	5. Part Cinq

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Apparently my brain decided on Julie bonding with Reggie and Alex this time? So much fluff. There's still a tiny bit of Luke at the end.

It was late on Saturday night after Flynn had gone home, and Julie was sprawled across her bed working on her math homework.

A soft knock sounded at her door, "Come in."

Alex and Reggie stepped right through her door, "Can we hang out with you for a little while? Luke is still busy in the studio."

Julie smiled at them, "Sure, you just have to be quiet for a little while while I finish this math. Then we can watch a movie or something on my laptop."

"Cool." Reggie sat down backwards in her desk chair, crossing his arms over the back, looking calm.

Alex, though, he wandered over to the window and leaned on the wall next to it. 'I'm glad we found Willie and he was okay, but all this stuff with sometimes being seen or solid and sometimes not is really making me anxious.' He unconsciously began to twist his hands together.

Julie caught the movement out of the corner of her eye, and just said quietly, "We can turn on some music until I get this done. Here." Without really even looking at him, she turned her laptop and hit play, waving Alex over and patting the space next to her on the bed in front of it. She knew he needed a distraction.

Alex puffed out a quick breath, striding the few steps over and settling himself next to her in front of the computer. "Thanks Julie."

She just kept her eyes on her notebook, humming gently in reply.

Alex felt warm, she was really an amazing friend. He glanced up at Reggie, seeing an expression that told him Reggie knew just what that all was, and he agreed that Julie was the best.

The notes of the first song in the playlist started to filter in, and he bobbed his head, it was good. He focused down on the open playlist on the laptop screen in front of him, it was called:

"Juke-box : )"

1\. Rewrite the Stars - The Greatest Showman

2\. Treacherous- Taylor Swift

3\. So Close- Jon McLaughlin

4\. This Love- Taylor Swift

5\. ...

6\. ...

He noticed the range of artists and genres as he read through, Julie liked a little of everything it seemed, or at least he thought so- he still didn't know over half of these. But then, as the third song got going Alex's eyes narrowed and his head involuntarily cocked to one side, 'I think I am hearing a VERY interesting theme in this song selection.'

"So close to feeling alive..."

He decided he was too impatient to wait (and, honestly he did love Taylor Swift, ever since Julie had introduced her music to him), so he reached out and just poked the keyboard to skip ahead to song number four.

The song started playing and he closed his eyes, she really did have so many different sounds. He just enjoyed it for a while, but then the lyrics reminded him of his previous suspicions.

"Your kiss, my cheek, I watched you leave

Your smile, my ghost, I fell to my knees..."

His eyes snapped open and met Reggie's, who had been watching him curiously since he had gotten so intense reading the screen. Alex raised an eyebrow in question, eyes darting down to the laptop and back, asking silently 'Are you noticing this?!'

Reggie just stared for a second, thinking things over, obviously trying to figure out what Alex was trying to ask, but then the song reached the chorus again and his eyes went wide.

"This love is good, this love is bad,

this love is alive back from the dead..."

They communicated only in facial expressions for a long minute before the next song, and then it began, and they both just slowly turned to appraise Julie with what felt like a completely new understanding. They knew this song, it was a classic that came out in 1984, and it was deeply interesting that she would have it on a playlist with those other songs.

"I can't fight this feeling any longer

And yet I'm still afraid to let it flow

What started out as friendship has grown stronger

I only wish I had the strength to let it show..."

Julie had started to hum along with the song as she completed her last math problem, she set her pencil down and went to stretch, freezing mid-movement as she found Alex and Reggie staring at her with rather inscrutable expressions.

"Uh, guys? What is it?" They were creeping her out a bit. She relaxed some but sat back away from Alex next to her.

At first Alex just pointed at the laptop screen, not taking his eyes off of her. Then he spoke, "Music is important to us too, Julie. You cannot tell me this is not a very specifically curated playlist."

"And even I caught some very, very interesting lyrics in those songs," Reggie added.

Julie face was that of a deer in headlights. 'Crap! Crap, crap, crap! How could I have forgotten that THAT was the playlist I was listening to most recently (or constantly for the last week)?!'

"Ummm, nah, no, nope, I just put some random stuff together for that one, it's not anything..."

They shook their heads at her. "Not gonna work," Alex mock frowned at her.

Reggie just laughed, "Don't be ridiculous Julie, remember, we were there this morning for 'Perfect Harmony.'"

She was positive she was blushing now. "Oh, uh, um, see..."

Alex finally took pity on her and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Julie, I think you two would be amazing."

"You really would, he's so happy when he's with you." Reggie dipped his head in agreement.

She just buried her face in her hands with a slightly hysterical laugh.

Alex put his other arm around her and gave her a tight side hug, "Don't worry, we won't say anything." He pulled back and scooted to the top of her bed, grabbing the laptop as he went, "Now what movie do we just HAVE to see?"

Julie sighed, crawling up next to him and beckoning Reggie over to join them, so she could have them one on each side, "Let's take a look."

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the studio loft Luke finally looked up from his journal, suddenly registering how dark and quiet it was. "Guys?" he called softly.

When no one answered, he smiled fondly, Alex and Reggie must have recognized the signs, and made sure he wasn't disturbed. They knew him so well.

He stood up and stretched, feeling a little stiff, which was odd, since he hadn't really felt anything like that as a ghost so far. Then a yawn escaped him, and he was officially shocked. 'That's new. Although, I did nap next to Julie on the couch yesterday.' He shrugged and decided he might as well see if he could sleep again. Grabbing a blanket he walked down from the loft to curl up on the couch, just as he had done many times before, back when he was alive. That's why it kinda really was HIS couch.

Luke fell asleep with a grin on his face, normally he would think this new song was a little sappy, but the fact was, it was the truth. And he was so elated from his intense writing session, he wasn't even nervous about showing it to Julie tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The last song quoted is 'Can't Fight This Feeling' - REO Speedwagon


	6. Part Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More Julie fluff with Alex and Reggie. Also featuring Ray Molina. Hahaha.

Julie sat snuggly between Alex and Reggie on her bed as they watched a movie on her laptop, her head leaning against Alex's shoulder, and her hand holding Reggie's hand over where their legs lay next to each other. She didn't mind them needing the contact, it was nice. This reminded her of how she used to cuddle up with Carlos when they watched movies together, they hadn't done that in awhile. 

A stray thought distracted her from the movie, "Hey guys, besides 'Perfect Harmony' this morning, you already saw Luke and I on Thursday, you took those pictures. Were you really that surprised at my playlist?"

Alex chuckled, "We didn't want to assume anything, even if we did suspect."

"I was absolutely assuming! I just figured it was up to you to tell us or not. Alex is the one who noticed the playlist theme."

"Luke is, or I guess was, notorious for themed mixtapes. It was a little crazy how your playlist was just like that. And when 'Can't Fight This Feeling' came on, well, I thought you might not mind having us to talk to about it?" Alex turned a little to look at her hesitatingly.

She was a little stuck on the thought of Luke and mixtapes, 'What were the themes, did they still exist somewhere? Maybe the loft? Julie, Alex asked you a question, FOCUS.'

"I- no, yeah, it's actually nice to have you guys know. Flynn is finally on board, after seeing your pictures of us by the way. She just didn't get it before, this _CONNECTION_ I have with him, I mean, you guys too, but it's, it's just, _DIFFERENT_ , you know, with him?" 

Reggie gently squeezed her hand, "We get it. It's hard to miss, especially when you sing together, but actually it's pretty noticeable other times too."

"Thanks for understanding," Julie smiled shyly, turning back to the movie, glad they had this time to hang out and talk.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------

As the credits of the movie started to roll, there was a knock on Julie's door. Reggie and Alex both tensed, but Julie just adjusted to look like she was sitting alone and whispered to them, "Just stay, we're all comfy, and you probably can't be seen anyway."

"Come in!" 

Her dad opened the door and walked into her room a few steps before stopping short with a look of surprise, "Julie, you didn't tell me you were having friends over? Wait, I know you guys!" His face lit up, he had wanted to thank her bandmates for what felt like forever. "You're her band!" An expression of confusion spread, "But, aren't you supposed to be in Sweden or something? And shouldn't there be one more of you?"

The three of them were frozen on her bed for all of this, finally Alex managed to croak unsteadily, "Hi Mr. Molina, I'm Alex. We, uh, decided to visit...?"

Julie cringed, that was never going to work. It was time to come clean and tell her dad everything. "Papi, that's not exactly accurate. I only didn't tell you because I knew you would think I was crazy, but they guys, they're not holograms. They're ghosts."

Ray was a little lost, and not sure what to think. The boys sitting next to his daughter sure looked alive enough to him.

Luckily, or maybe unluckily, Reggie was not a subtle person when he was excited. And he was REALLY excited to meet Julie's dad. "RAY! You can see us! This is amazing!" Reggie jumped off the bed and took two big steps toward him, going in for a hug. 

Except he wasn't solid anymore. He fell right through Ray, right onto his face on the floor, immediately pounding one fist against it and whining, "That's just not fair!"

Ray stood there in complete shock for moment, then slowly took two steps over and sat down in Julie's desk chair. He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees and clasped his hands together. "Mija, please explain from the beginning." One of her friends had just fallen through him, he was willing to at least listen.

Julie took a deep breath and glanced between Alex and Reggie, who was now sitting against her open door with his legs sprawled out in front of him looking a bit dejected. Then she looked back at her dad and started at the beginning, "Dad, do you remember when I told you there were ghosts in the studio?....."

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So, you guys really were the orbs in the studio when I took those pictures? But you showed up just fine on video when you sang for the party, that seems odd."

Alex, Reggie and Julie all looked at him, dumbfounded. "That's your first thought?" Julie asked in disbelief.

"Oh, no, but the discussion of keeping your door open and letting me know when they are in your room is really more between me and you." He gave her a significant look, "And I really can't wait to meet Luke."

Julie blushed hard and ducked her head,'Okay if my dad can tell that easily, I'm screwed.'

Ray slapped his hands on his knees, and stood up, satisfied that she had gotten the message. "I can't say this isn't one of the craziest things I've ever heard, but I'm just going to go with it for now." As he walked out the door past Reggie, he leaned down and cautiously reached out, managing to actually grasp Reggie's shoulder, "You can come hang out with me whenever you want, I can guess you're the one who keeps finding my keys and my phone when I need them and Julie and Carlos are at school. Thanks."

He then glanced behind him at Julie and Alex still sitting on the bed, "Don't stay up too late kids, I'll make pancakes tomorrow. If you're sometimes solid now, we should see if you need to eat, if you do I can't let you starve in my house."

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was several minutes after her dad left that any of them even moved. 

"I finally get it Reggie, he's awesome." Alex was at a loss watching Ray's casual acceptance of these completely insane circumstances.

Reggie sniffled, "He patted my shoulder. And he knew I was the one moving his stuff so he could find it. He said 'thanks!' and that I could hang out with him whenever." He buried his face in his hands, shaking with suppressed sobs.

Julie was worried, why would that make Reggie cry? "Alex, why is that such a big deal?" She asked him urgently as she stood up to go try and calm Reggie down.

"His parents fought a lot, they didn't really make time for him." He said it quietly, getting up and following her over, both of them reaching out to pull Reggie into a hug.

"Well, my dad will be happy to have you to hang out with Reggie." 

Reggie lifted his head and smiled as his tears subsided, hugging them both back.

Julie let herself deeply sigh, releasing the tension that had been crackling through her ever since her dad walked into her room and could see the guys. She suddenly laughed, "That was actually SO MUCH easier than I though it would be!" She pulled back from the hug and gently smacked Reggie in the arm, "You literally fell right through him?! That was actually so perfect! He couldn't really deny the truth after that!"

That set them all off, rolling on the floor giggling like crazy as they replayed Reggie's face-plant _THROUGH_ Ray.

Finally they all calmed down and were just laying on the floor quietly. 

Julie let out a big yawn, "Oh. I guess it is getting late. I should go to bed and you guys should go see how things are going with Luke. I can't wait to hear what's he's working on."

Alex sat up and caught hold of Reggie's arm, "We'll let you know, we promise. Come on Reggie."

They both popped out of sight, back to the studio.

Julie smiled contentedly to herself, she could touch them and her dad knew everything, she didn't have to lie to him anymore. Things were really going well.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Reggie and Alex appeared back in the studio, ready to quietly settle in and wait for Luke to come down from the loft. But the first thing they saw in the dim light was Luke. He was curled up on his couch, obviously fast asleep, snuggled into a blanket and looking happy and relaxed.

They studied him for a moment.

"He's done."

"It's going to be really good isn't it?"

"Oh yeah."

They both wandered over to the chairs, settling in to wait for morning. They had to try to rest, even if they still didn't seem to have regained the ability to sleep again like Luke had. Ray was making pancakes, and he had obviously picked up on the chemistry between his daughter and Luke. 

"Hey Alex, are we going to tell Luke that Ray can see us now?"

"Absolutely not. I want to watch him to find out in real time." Alex's grin was deeply mischievous.

The 'Luke and Julie- the only people who refuse to notice how the other feels about them' show promised to be superbly entertaining tomorrow, it was going to have a special guest in the form of Julie's dad. And Alex was so down for it, especially since he had a tiny suspicion that the song Luke had just finished was very much a love song for Julie.


	7. Part Sept

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Breakfast with Ray and the guys.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I just, I have no idea where all of this came from, but here's part 7. It got a little sappy here and there, and I think I will get to Luke's song in the next part, which will be very sappy. This got totally out of control but, uh, enjoy?

  
Part Sept

\---------------------------------------

Julie came down the stairs the next morning and smiled at her dad as he stood in the kitchen wearing his blue "Breakfast Chef!" apron. He may not be great at dinner all the time, they ate a lot of spaghetti, but he occasionally went all out for breakfast. The apron had been a birthday gift from Julie and Carlos for his birthday a few years ago. It was nice to see him wearing it, it had been awhile. 'I still miss mom like crazy, but maybe we really have started to heal? This is good.' Julie went around the counter and gave him a side hug, before leaning over and turning up the radio he was playing.

"I'm going to go get the guys, go ahead and sing, you know you want to." She rolled her eyes a bit, laughing as she ducked out to head to the studio. She could hear him getting into it before the door shut behind her and muffled his voice.

"Oh, I know that the music's fine like sparkling wine..."

  
Julie bounced down the stairs to the studio, she couldn't wait to find out if Luke had finished his song. If it really might be as good as 'Now or Never' or, wow, 'Unsaid Emily' she knew she would love it. She tugged the door to the studio open just enough to slip inside, finding Alex and Reggie each curled up in chairs, and Luke... 'Oh, my God. He has no right at all to look that adorable.' All she wanted was to go curl up next to him and drift off to sleep for a few more hours, screw pancakes.

A stifled chuckle brought her out of her daydream, Alex was watching her, obviously amused by her reaction. "Reggie and I will meet you inside. Be nice when you wake him up."

Reggie nodded enthusiastically, "We'll be hanging out with Ray! Pancakes!"

They popped out before she could even reply, but it didn't really matter, not when her ears caught a soft incoherent grumble from the couch. She might as well have been able to teleport herself, as fast as she was over kneeling near Luke's head. She reached out, but hesitated. Even with all the little touches she and the guys had started to get used to over the past week, the nap with Luke the other day, and the bonding time with Alex and Reggie yesterday, she was still sometimes so in awe that they were solid to her.

"Luke." She whispered, her hand finally making contact with his shoulder, gently shaking him.

"Nooo, just five more minutes Jules, you don't...mumble.....school day....mumble."

Her mouth dropped open for a moment, before blushing as a flattered smile crept across her lips. 'He was dreaming again. About HER.' She moved her hand up, carding her fingers through his hair a few times, "Luke, you have to wake up. We need to meet the guys in the kitchen, we want to hear about your song."

"Don' wanna," he pushed his head closer into her hand, "Just stay here."

She started to giggle, noticing that he was pretty much awake now, just attempting to fake it so he wouldn't have to get up. She pulled her hand back and stood up, "You're going to miss out then, the guys are going to see if being solid means they can eat. We're having pancakes."

His eyes shot open at that, and he looked up at her from under his lashes, an excited look on his face, "Do you really think we could?!"

A full laugh burst out from her, "I don't know but we'll see."

He scrambled up, getting tangled up in his blanket and almost tripping several times, causing her to gasp for breath from laughing so hard at him.

"I knew food would get you. No just staring into the fridge this time either." She held out her hand for him to grab, "Come on, you can walk with me."

He flashed her the grin she was starting to think of as hers, and laced their fingers, "Whatever you say Jules."

And didn't that just make her blush. Again.

\---------------------------------------------

Julie let go of Luke's hand, opening the kitchen door. The sound hit them first, it seemed the guys had made her dad switch the station. Ray was mixing pancake batter and Alex and Reggie each had a wooden spoon in hand, all of them singing along to the Backstreet Boys, all three of them turning to her and Luke in the doorway and serenading them,

"You are my fire  
The one desire...."

Ray broke off and turned the music down a little, "Hey, Luke, isn't it? Do you want to try pancakes with or without chocolate chips?"

  
"......." 

"Luke?" Julie turned to him in concern. He looked shocked. 

"Did your dad just talk to me? Is he actually looking at me right now?"

"Wait..." She turned to glare at Alex and Reggie, "I assumed you told him! That was mean!"

Ray decided to enjoy this a little. Reggie and Alex were hilarious and he could just tell they weren't an issue, but this Luke, well, he wasn't stupid, he had seen three performances. Not to mention he noticed the way Julie's voice got just a little dreamy and her eyes got hazy when she talked about him, during the explanation of the 'my band is actually ghosts' thing.

"Yes, I can see you. Julie told me everything last night. Also about how guys can be solid and you can touch each other. I'm sure you'll be willing to have a little discussion about ground rules regarding that after breakfast?" He raised an eyebrow at Luke and no one had any doubts about his meaning.

"Daa-aad!" Julie buried her face in her hands in embarrassment and exasperation, she hadn't even talked to Luke about what maybe (definitely was) happening between them!

Luke managed to surprise the whole room, though, even himself a little bit. He met Ray's eyes full on, "I understand exactly what you mean, we don't need a discussion."

Ray stared him down for a long moment, before nodding decisively. "Okay. Now, I still need to know if you want chocolate chips or not." 

"Yes please, sir." Luke strolled over and leaned in next to Ray, "Wow, do you make your batter from scratch? My mom used to do that. What's your recipe?" He gently nudged Ray's arm with his elbow, "If it's not a Molina family secret, of course."

Ray lit up, 'If this was the guy Julie liked, she was just as smart as he always thought she was. He already liked this Luke guy.' "As a matter of fact, it is a Molina family secret recipe." His voice dropped to a stage whisper, his eyes darting over to Julie in mirth, "We got it online from the Food Network website a few years ago, but don't tell Julie, she thinks I'm actually this good at pancakes."

Luke laughed with Ray, then started asking him about his favorite music, the two of them almost instantly engrossed in a discussion about genres and the different influences of classic bands.

  
Julie, Alex and Reggie were left stunned. None of that had gone as they expected.

The three of them moved to the table and sat down, staring around at each other in disbelief. "Why do I feel like I'm the one that got pranked?" Alex asked. He had expected to have some fun at Luke's expense, not telling him that Ray knew about them. Beside the moment of surprise from Luke, nothing happened in any way that he might have imagined.

Julie just waved a hand at them chatting by the stove as Ray starting frying the pancakes, "That- that is just too weird." She wanted her dad to like Luke, but having him go from vaguely threatening to best buddies in 1.3 minutes with her 'not-boyfriend, but maybe soon to be boyfriend, who, by the way is a GHOST' well, she doesn't know what to do with that.

Reggie just looked vindicated, he crossed his arms and smirked at Alex, "You and Luke said Ray wasn't that cool, you were WRONG."

"Reggie you realize Luke is over there making best friends with Ray, without you?" Alex said pointedly.

"Oh! Yeah, I'm going to go join them!" He shot over to them, joining in their conversation with a comment about country music, causing Luke to roll his eyes a little, and Ray to ask a follow up question. Both of them effortlessly bringing Reggie into their huddle around the stove.

Alex and Julie went back to staring at each other, trying to process the mornings events.

\------------------------------------------

Eventually the pancakes were done and Ray carried the platter over to the table, asking Luke over his shoulder, "Grab the syrup on the counter there, please Luke."

"Absolutely!"

They all sat down, five people crowding around the four person table, luckily Carlos had been at a sleepover last night and wouldn't be home until the afternoon. 'That's right, he knew they were ghosts already, but he'll be so excited that he can see them now.' Julie thought fondly of her little brother.

Ray took the lead, taking Julie's hand on one side and Reggie's on his other, Julie took Luke's on her other side and he and Reggie took each of Alex's to complete the circle. 

"Julie, why don't you show the guys how it's done?"

"Thank you for this meal, and we would really appreciate if the boys could actually eat it, they miss eating. Amen."

Everyone laughed a little at that, before digging in. All the guys got bites of pancake ready on their forks. "Here goes nothing," Luke lifted his fork in a toast with Alex and Reggie and they all put them in their mouths and started chewing. Julie and her dad waited with bated breath.

Three throats swallowed, and then they all moaned in happiness and appreciation.

"These are INCREDIBLE." Julie was having a hard time focusing on Luke's words after the positively sinful noise he just made.

"Really, I don't even think it's because these are the first pancakes I've had in 25 years, they are sooo good." Alex, ever polite, managed to compliment Ray even as he started to shovel bites in his mouth in earnest.

"I love them, I just love them so much." Reggie was almost in tears.

Ray was infinitely pleased. "I guess I need to work on cooking more often again."

"Yeah, sure Dad." Julie was only absently eating, trying and failing to not be distracted by some very salacious thoughts.

The conversation swirled around her for awhile as they ate, Luke, Reggie, and her dad picking up their discussion of music, with Alex joining in this time.

As she finally got her imagination under control, she decided it was time to ask about Luke's song. "So Luke, did you finish the song you were working on yesterday?" She had managed to hold off her curiosity for as long as she could.

He paused, his fork halfway to his mouth. 'I can't show it to her yet, it's too personal! We need to talk about a few things first.' "Um, I have finished it..."

"Great! We can go take a look after breakfast!"

"I- No Julie, it's not quite ready yet."

"But you just said it's finished."

He winced at the stubborn tone in her voice, "I did, but it's different and it's actually a solo song. For me."

Julie blinked at him, hurt falling over her face, "You didn't plan to have me sing with you?"

"Well, no. But- but, Julie, it's, well," he had dropped his fork and now his hand went up to rub the back of his neck in a familiar nervous gesture. "It's sort of FOR you."

Well, she had no idea what to say to that.

Ray cleared his throat, "I think I'm done with breakfast, and I better get the kitchen cleaned up. Reggie, Alex, why don't you help me?" He gave them both a significant look, standing up and grabbing his plate and Julie's.

"Of course Ray!" Reggie didn't really notice the subtext, he just was pleased to hang out with Ray more.

Alex glanced between Luke and Julie, not quite sure about leaving them when there was palpable tension rolling through the air around them. But self-preservation won, and he scooped up Luke's plate with his own, escaping away from the table to the other side of the counter with Reggie and Ray.

\---------------------------------------

Julie took a deep breath, "I don't understand. You've gone into my room and snooped through my dream box, despite my multiple reminders of boundaries, more than once, Luke. How can you sit there and tell me your new song is too 'personal'?" She had to work hard to keep her voice steady and even.

"Julie." He turned fully towards her on his chair, with her unconsciously mirroring him, and reached out to hold her hands in his. "Jules, I want to practice it with Alex and Reggie alone first, but I want you to be my audience after we have it down." He sighed and looked down, squeezing her hands gently, before tilting his head back up and locking his eyes on hers. "I was struggling with a few fragments of lyrics for this song when you came and found me in the studio the other day. Talking to you about my old songs, and about your mom, it only made those lyrics more insistent in my head. Yesterday it finally all came together. I want to perform it for you, is that okay?"

'How was she supposed to say 'no' when he was holding her hands and his eyes were inches away?' 

"Okay."

"Really?!" A grin spread over his lips, and his eyes shined in gratitude. He gave her hands one more squeeze and jumped up, "Reggie, Alex, we gotta go practice! Ray, breakfast was absolutely delicious, we can't thank you enough. Is it okay if I take your two clean up helpers away?"

Ray may have been goofing with the guys as they cleaned, but he had one eye on the conversation at the table the whole time. He was impressed with the sincerity Luke had displayed in the face of his daughter when she was upset like that. Not to mention the fact that they had obviously spoken about her mom, something he could hardly get her to do with him. He didn't want to be there for the performance of whatever this new song was, but he sure wanted to hear it later. "Sure Luke! They were almost more hinderance than help anyway!" 

"Hey!"

"We were so a help!"

He waved the dish towel at all three of them, "Go on, you better practice and let Julie know as soon as you're ready or she might combust out of impatience."

"Thanks Ray!"

The three boys popped away, surprising Ray, "Oh, that I wasn't expecting."

Julie giggled at him, that was a little more like how she thought he would react. "Dad, thank you so much for being so amazing about all of this." She walked over and wrapped him in a hug, which he automatically returned.

"Julie, those boys brought music back to you, which brought you back to me, I will always be grateful. And I don't know what to say about them being ghosts, but they all care about you very much, and somehow I can tell they're all really good people. I'm happy to have them in our lives." He paused for a beat, "Even Luke."

She groaned, "Can we please not talk about that?! I promise we won't go in my room and close the door or anything like that! And it's silly anyway, I mean, he's a ghost!" 

"A ghost who can now be solid and who just shared breakfast with us. Mija, I don't know what will happen in the future, but even if I knew I would lose your mom too soon the way I did, I wouldn't go back and change it for anything. This boy, even if he is a ghost, makes you light up. Enjoy the time you have, and pray for a miracle, I know I will be. Those boys didn't deserve to die so young."


	8. Part Huit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And we have finally arrived at Luke's song.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is quite short, but it's Friday, and I already started drinking when I was writing. Also, I just felt Luke's song deserved its own chapter. It's super sappy, too. Let me know how this one hits you all. :)

Part Huit

Luke's song is 'Eyes' by 16 Frames, it's absolutely worth a listen.

\-----------------------------------------------------

Alex and Reggie waited impatiently as Luke slowly picked up his journal, holding it close to his chest. "Guys, this, it's really personal and I know I denied the 'chemistry' between Julie and I before, but, well, I was definitely lying. Mostly to myself back then. I don't know what's going to happen, I'm- we're, still ghosts, but come on! We just ate pancakes in there! Ray could see us! I don't want to waste any of the time we have, even if we don't know how long it might be."

Reggie's eyes were glistening, "That was beautiful Luke."

Alex muttered under his breath, "Again, how am _'I'_ the emotional one?!" He coughed and spoke up again, "Luke, we get it. Actually, I was thinking it might be better if Reggie and I just record our parts, then you can play them and perform for Julie by yourself. If this is going to be anything like yesterday with 'Perfect Harmony' I would rather not be uncomfortable watching what should probably be a private moment."

Luke blinked in surprise, but then nodded, "That is actually a really good idea Alex, thanks."

So Luke handed out parts to the guys so they could practice, keeping the lyrics to himself. They went through the song several times, getting the tempo and dynamics of their parts to blend and work together. Finally they had it, and turned on the recording equipment that was a new addition to the studio (at least for them) and got Reggie and Alex's tracks laid in. Luke would play his guitar part and sing live. 

  
"I really, really appreciate this you two. And I'll record my part when I sing it for Julie, that way at least there's a record of the song, even if I don't know if I will ever be ready to perform it for anyone else."

Reggie and Alex just looked at him with understanding, even without the lyrics, this song just felt like something different.

"We'll go hang out and see if we can find Willie, do you want us to send Julie out before we go?"

Luke took a shaky breath, closing his eyes and steeling himself. "Yeah, go ahead. I'm ready." His tone became more determined at the end, he couldn't keep this to himself anymore. 'She needed to know.'

\-----------------------------------------------

Julie quietly opened the door to the studio and slipped inside, "Luke? Alex and Reggie said you were ready and then they popped away mentioning going to look for Willie, I though they were going to play the song with you?"

Luke was standing in front of the band area, guitar slung around him, obviously a little nervous. He once again rubbed the back of his neck, replying to her around the pick he was holding in his mouth, "They did. Well, they recorded their parts so I could play with along with it. Alex thought, and Reggie agreed, that this kinda needed to be between you and me." His eyes were darting around, as if he wasn't ready to meet her gaze.

"Okay. I'm ready whenever you are." She told him gently as she settled herself down in the same chair she had (nicely) shoved Flynn into for 'Flying Solo.'

He rubbed his neck one more time and cleared his throat. Then he simply turned and pressed 'play' for Reggie and Alex's recording to begin ,and 'record' so his part would be added so it was all on one track. He took the pick out of his mouth and fell into rhythm, strumming his guitar and closing his eyes for a long moment as he tumbled into the emotion of his song.

Julie already liked the melody, but her heart cracked open and then mended all over again when he began to sing. His eyes opened and landed directly on hers.

  
"Ohhh, ohhhh oh  
and we don't need to say the words to know the story   
all along the hands of fate are leading me to your door   
and looking back over where I've been, i think I finally understand

that the love I want is in your eyes   
its in your eyes  
wo-o-ah the love I want is in your eyes   
can it be a reason to break the walls down   
making me believe in this thing we found  
oh the love I want is in your eyes  
in your eyes

and we don't have to play the game   
to know who's winning   
I've come this far, lay down my cause  
I'm losing it all for you  
I leave behind what I used to be  
because I know when you look at me

that the love I want is in your eyes   
its in your eyes  
wo-o-ah the love I want is in your eyes   
can it be a reason to break the walls down   
making me believe in this thing we found  
oh the love I want is in your eyes  
in your eyes

and ohh what I want is you and nothing else  
and ohh we should never be apart  
be apart  
be apart

oh and the love that I want is in your eyes   
its in your eyes  
wo-o-ah the love that I want is in your eyes   
can it be a reason to break the walls down   
making me believe in this thing we found  
oh the love I want is in your eyes  
it's in your eyes  
it's in your eyes  
in your eyes  
it's in your eyes..."

The song faded out, and Luke kept eye contact with Julie, just blindly reaching over and hitting the stop button for the recording. 

They stared at each other for another long minute, Luke vulnerable and hopeful, and Julie with silent tears tracing down her cheeks. Her dad was so right, she was going to be grateful for every second she got to spend with Luke, and pray for a miracle. And even if she didn't get one, and she had to let him go in the future, whenever that may be, she will always, always, remember any and all the time that they had.

"Luke..." Julie's voice was thick with emotion as she stood up to walk over to him.

He slipped his guitar off and set it in the stand, taking a few steps forward to meet her, and cup her face in his hands. She followed his lead, their position much like it had been when Julie saved the guys from Caleb's stamp.

"I need you to know Julie. I know I'm still a ghost, and our time together may have an expiration date, but I want to spend whatever time I have with you. No regrets."

Julie sniffled, "I want that too, Luke. No regrets."

They shifted into a tight hug, knowing they were both completely on the same page, and ready to enjoy being together for as long as they were allowed.

  
\------------------------------------------------ 


	9. Part Neuf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Starts right as the last part ended.... Oh, and Carlos finds out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Family bonding fluff, and more.

  
Part Neuf

  
\-------------------------------------------------

  
Luke and Julie loosened their hug. Luke pulled back slightly and reached up to tuck some of her hair back behind her ear, his touch lingering as they stared at each other. His thoughts were fragmented, but one kept pushing forward. He licked his lips and asked her, his voice barely a whisper, "Can I kiss you Julie?"

  
For her part, Julie was lost deeply in his eyes, his question causing her gaze to dart to his lips and back. 'This is literally perfect.'

"Yes."

  
He slowly leaned in and she met him halfway, going up on her toes. Their lips connected and the world disappeared. It didn't matter that he was a ghost anymore, this was where they were supposed to be. Together.

Neither one of them noticed a slight golden glow that seemed to envelop Luke as they kissed.

\----------------------------------------------

  
Julie and Luke walked back to the house hand-in-hand, soft, secret smiles being exchanged the entire way. They slipped inside the back door and headed towards the living room, it sounded like her dad was watching a movie.

"Hey Dad."

"Julie! Dad says you made pancakes without me this morning! That's not fair!" Carlos turned from his place on the couch next to Ray, upset about missing a family breakfast. 

He then froze. "Uh, Julie." He glanced frantically between her and Ray, who had just laughed at his excited tirade and kept watching the movie. Carlos climbed over the couch quickly and hissed at her, "Julie! What's going on?! I can SEE him, and dad might too, why did you bring him in the house?!"

Julie's eyes went wide, and flicked over to Ray, noticing in profile his barely suppressed grin, and almost imperceptibly shaking shoulders. 

"Daaad! Oh, why are all of you such juveniles! You didn't tell him who else ate breakfast with us?!"

Carlos looked astonished. "He KNOWS?! And, hold up! He can see him?! And he ATE BREAKFAST WITH YOU?!"

Julie turned and dropped her face into Luke's chest, "You explain," her voice muffled, "I just, I can't do this again."

Luke laughed, wrapping his arm around her and maneuvering them over to the loveseat, saying, "Carlos, buddy, have a seat. A lot of stuff has happened since you figured us out last week."

"Wait, Carlos figured out you were ghosts?" Ray was suddenly more interested in this conversation than the movie.

"Yeah, Julie said he found our CD, the one that she played that, I don't know? Summoned us? It has an insert with pictures, she kinda had to let him in on things." Luke nodded at Carlos, "Aside from the detour with the 'ghost chef' idea Reggie and Alex told me about, you really caught on fast."

Ray chuckled at that, "We got some pretty good French Dips out of that, I didn't mind."

Carlos was not to be side-tracked, though, "I can see you, and Dad can see you, and you seem to be solid? Julie is touching you now, at least. And, you can eat? You ate pancakes? Are you, like, coming back to life?"

Everyone paused at that question.

"I- I don't..."

"How would that even work?!"

"That would require some very complicated planning if you do...Hmmmm, I might need to look into a few things....."

Julie, Luke and Carlos all blinked at Ray, "What?!" they spoke in unison.

Ray shook himself out of his thoughts, "Um, don't worry about it now, we'll deal with that if we need to."

They were confused, but let it go.

At that moment Reggie and Alex popped in, right in front of the TV, startling everyone.

"Gah!"

"Aah!"

Julie broke into uncontrollable giggles, she and Luke hadn't really been fazed, but her dad and Carlos had _JUMPED_ , and that had scared the guys.

"Wait, we can see you two also?!"

"They had pancakes, too, mijo."

"This is the WORST, I missed everything this morning!"

"Don't worry little dude! We can hang out now!" Reggie was totally elated. 

Julie whispered to Luke, as Alex and Reggie waved away the incident and greeted Ray and Carlos, the four of them chattering, all thrilled to finally be able to see and talk to each other. "Luke, did I look that silly when you kept popping up in front of me?"

"Jules, you looked adorable." His smile was fond, the arm around her shoulders squeezing her to his side in a hug. They just sat back and watched, Reggie tripping over his words as he told Ray and Carlos about something he saw with Alex downtown, Alex chiming in to correct him every other sentence.

This was perfect. None of them really knew anything about ghosts, and the boys seemed more human again every day. What if Carlos was right and they could, maybe, descend or something, and become human again?

\--------------------------------------------

  
Finally things settled down and they all agreed to watch a movie. Julie was infinitely glad the next day, Monday, was a school holiday, teacher conferences or something.

Ray even told her to call Flynn to come over and join them, she should have time to get there while he made copious amounts of popcorn for everyone. He had decided it was his job to feed these boys- ghosts or not. And, by god, would he feed them.

Flynn showed up and was a bit lost, Julie had texted her earlier when Luke and the boys were practicing for his song to her, so she knew some of what had been going on. The problem was, a bunch of text messages did not accurately convey the insanity of walking into this. Ray and Reggie were making popcorn in the kitchen, Alex was looking at Julie's laptop next to Carlos, nodding earnestly as, was that Twitter?! got explained to him, and last, Julie and Luke were cuddled on the loveseat quietly talking, once again taking eye contact very seriously.

"This is incredibly weird, but, you know what? It's fine. It's totally fine." She shook her head and took a seat next to Carlos on the couch, "So, what movie are we going to watch?"

\----------------------------------------------

It was getting late as the movie was finishing, almost everyone was asleep or almost asleep, Carlos was across Flynn's and Alex's laps, she was leaning against the couch arm, and Alex and Reggie, who was on Alex's other side, were leaning against each other.

Ray was sprawled in his chair, still mostly awake and watching the end of the movie

Then there was Julie and Luke. They were cuddled together on the loveseat, completely out cold. Ray should maybe have been a little upset or worried about this, but he had actually snuck out to the studio earlier to eavesdrop at the door when Luke sang to Julie. He would never, ever, in a million years, admit that to anyone, but he had caught just enough. This boy, _*sigh*_ , GHOST, loved his little girl, and there was something... It was like he _KNEW_ Luke somehow, knew all three of these boys. Reggie had told him when they were making popcorn about how he had walked through him that first day, and how he knew that Ray was a good person. Well, ever since Reggie had fallen through him last night, trying to give him a hug, he just _KNEW_ these boys were good people too, or good ghosts, whatever. They weren't having any trouble staying solid tonight, and he could almost _SEE_ Luke breathing as he slept, causing strands of Julie's hair to flutter as she lay in his arms. And, actually, Alex and Reggie had both mentioned that although Luke had slept a few times the last couple days, they hadn't. But they were now. 'I think I need to make some plans. If they DO somehow become human again, they'll need records, paperwork....' He nodded, if a miracle happened, he would be ready.

The movie eventually ended and Ray got up, carefully picking Carlos up, and gently shaking Flynn awake, "Do you need to be home tonight Flynn?"

_*Yawn* "_ No, I told my parents I would just stay here."

"Okay, why don't you go on up and crash in Julie's room? I'm going to put Carlos to bed and get a few things cleaned up down here and then get some sleep myself."

"Okay... Um, are you just going to leave everyone else where they are?!" Flynn had just registered the entangled couple on the loveseat.

Ray let out a soft laugh, "Yes, I am. I don't really know why, but I know it's all right. Come on Flynn, I still have to figure out what to make for breakfast tomorrow, I'm not sure how to top the 'secret family recipe Molina pancakes' from this morning." They were walking up the stairs now, Carlos vaguely awake now, was being steered by his dad.

"Don't you just use that recipe from the Food Network?"

"Yeah. Sorry, I guess that's a bit of an inside joke with Luke."

Flynn opened her mouth to reply, but seemed to think better of it, closing it and just shaking her head, "Goodnight Ray, Carlos." She waved to them, stepping into Julie's room.

She was too tired to deal with her best friend having convinced her whole family that having three teenage _GHOSTS_ in her band, and them basically living (not-living) in their garage was fine. 


	10. Part Dix

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What's happening with Willie?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This will depart from the previous chapters, since I really haven't addressed the Caleb thing- also, for the purposes of this fic, my divergence from the show was at the band's group hug, and nothing after that happened from the season finale. Also, I have to bring Willie in, I will not discard Willex, even if this story is primarily Juke. They deserve some happy fluff too.
> 
> This was actually super fun to write, I have no clue where my brain managed to come up with it, though.

  
Part Dix

  
\------------------------------------------------------

Willie was reluctantly back at the Hollywood Ghost Club, he had been trying to spend as much time away as possible, since Caleb had been pissed that the guys broke the stamp's control. He was lucky to have met up with Alex and Reggie the other day, still staying as far away as possible, who knows how Caleb might react if he knew Willie had seen them. At least Alex knew he was okay, and he knew Alex was okay. Maybe that had to be enough.

"Mr. William." The Doorman who almost never spoke, usually only observing who passed through the club entrance, was waving him over officiously. 

"Uh, me?" Willie pointed to himself. This ghost was almost hazy, but seemed to be weighed down, like he had been around for much longer than Willie even wanted to think about.

"Lou would like to see you," The Doorman gestured to an almost hidden door in the alcove behind him. "It would not do, not to go immediately."

"L-Lou?"

A nod, and an insistent tug hit Willie, he stepped forward with trepidation and, opening the ancient-looking door, walked up the stairs.

Lou was almost never mentioned, but Willie had heard whispers from other members at the club, always accompanied by looks of awe and little detail. The only true thing anyone agreed on was Lou was Caleb's boss, the big one, the one who allowed Caleb his own power, and let him run the club. 'Why- How would Lou even know my name?' He wondered.

Willie was at the top of the stairs now, moving through an arched doorway into a room that screamed of darkness and time, and magic. "Come in Willie, and of course I know your name, I know all of Caleb's little pets." The silky voice was coming from behind a large wing-back chair, it revolved oh-so-slowly, revealing a gorgeous ghost- entity?, with a strong jaw and sculpted nose, dark hair curling around their shoulders.

"I called you here to talk to you about your friends, the ones that I released from Caleb's stamp."

"Y-You re-released?!"

"Of course. They didn't want to be here, and they were already promised for another destiny. It's a strong pull, I'm grateful they were able to resist Caleb's foolish misuse of that stamp until I was able to be briefed on the situation." Lou waved a hand dismissively, "Caleb has always been too rash when he decides he wants things, I may let him run the club but I do try keep an eye on him. And most of the time he stays in line. I've been a bit remiss lately, though, it seems time escaped me while I was visiting some other locations. These clubs are supposed to be primarily for those who want to be here, and Caleb appears to have forgotten that in my absence."

Willie was spellbound, this changed everything, "So, my-my friends are really free? Do, I mean, could, is it possible...?"

Lou laughed, an ethereal and chilling sound, but one that somehow made Willie feel better. "Yes, Willie, you may have been pleased to join the club back when you died, and you have been a wonderful member. But, I sense that you have found somewhere, or should I say, _SOMEONE_ , that you feel like you belong with instead?"

Willie blushed and shuffled his feet, holding his skateboard closer to his chest, "Uh, maybe, yeah."

"Then you should be with them." With a soft smile, that looked slightly out of place on the timeless face, and a negligent snap of fingers, Willie's wrist burned and the purple stamp floated out of his skin and dissipated in the air. "Go find Alex, Willie. It was nice to meet you."

"Th-thanks. I- wicked! Thank you _SO_ much!"

And, as the chair was being turned back around, a last comment floated on the air to Willie as he bounded down the stairs, feeling light and free. "Be happy Willie!"

  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------

Willie came out of the alcove behind the Doorman's desk, heading out the club entrance, but was stopped short by Caleb striding over, obviously pissed. "Where have you been?!"

Before Willie could reply, however, the Doorman spoke up. In his hollow voice, tinged with the echo of time, and a bit of derision, "Mr. Covington. Lou has requested your presence."

Caleb's face drained of all color. "N-now?"

"Yes. Lou came to audit the club last week and was deeply displeased with the way you have twisted the club's mission in their absence, and that you seem to have re-written the story of their benevolent gift of your power. I would be prepared to grovel if I were you, and I really wouldn't keep Lou waiting." The Doorman gave a sinister curl of his lips, a mocking imitation of a smile.

"I-I, but...!"

A gust of icy air swept past Willie as he watched, slamming into Caleb and seemingly twisting around him and forcing him into the alcove and up the stairs, his protests fading as the door gently shut behind him on its own.

The Doorman raised an eyebrow at Willie, "I believe you have somewhere else to be?"

"Uh, yeah-yes. Thanks, bye!" He shot out the door, popping to the driveway in front of the studio as soon as he made it outside.

  
\----------------------------------------------------------

  
Julie, Luke, Reggie, and Alex had been lounging around the studio after another big breakfast, courtesy of Ray. Poor Flynn got called home early, so she missed out. It was scrambled eggs and bacon this time, the boys still savoring every bite, and Luke driving Julie to distraction with every appreciative noise he made. She wasn't ready to do more than enjoy holding him, and kissing him, but it was hard not to think about it sometimes.

\--------------------------------------------------------- 

  
Willie wasn't sure exactly how to go about this. He was so excited to see Alex, but he wasn't really sure what he should say. The last time they had just yelled at each other from afar, confirming they were both okay, still worried about Caleb. But, Caleb wasn't a threat anymore, instead Caleb seemed to be the one in big trouble.

He was free. He was _FREE_. Willie started to laugh, quickly becoming slightly hysterical as it sunk in, and the relief flooded through him.

The doors to the studio flew open, the guys and Julie all standing there with confused and worried expressions. Alex looking desperately hopeful at the positive, happy, vibes Willie was giving off.

Willie's laugh turned a bit more normal, his eyes scanning over them and noting with amusement they way Luke stood protectively in front of Julie, one hand squeezing Alex's right shoulder in support, Julie holding Alex's right hand and peeking out between them from behind Luke. Then Reggie on the other side, hugging Alex's left arm to his chest. They cared so much about Alex, and each other, Willie really wanted to be a part of it all. 

He finally got control of his laughter, but couldn't fight the grin that stretched across his lips. "I have _SO MUCH_ to tell you guys! First, though, we don't have to worry about Caleb ever again."

"What?!"  
"How?!"  
"Thank God!"  
"Oh, thank goodness."

Willie shook his head, Reggie, Luke, Julie, and Alex, their responses predictable somehow, even if he didn't know them that well yet. "It's an interesting story, can we go inside and sit down?"

Julie took charge, "Of course, come on in Willie, it's really good to finally meet you! And I'm very excited that I can see you, wasn't sure if I would be able to." They all stepped into the studio.

"I think Lou made it happen, they released me from my stamp, they did it for you guys last week too."

"Wait, what?" Luke spoke up, looking a bit displeased, "No, JULIE saved us."

Willie shook his head, "No, well, she did kinda. She helped you resist the stamps until Lou found out what Caleb did and removed them."

"Who the hell is Lou?!" Luke sounded confused and frustrated, he didn't like thinking about Caleb, and how stupid he had been going to the club. Since he and Julie were together now, he felt even worse when he remembered how he had let her down. She picked up on this, they were even more in-tune now, catching his hand and pulling him over to sit on the couch, sitting so close she was almost in his lap. 

"Please, have a seat Willie, and start at the beginning." She tipped her head to the other end of the couch, her hands were occupied holding Luke's arms around her, stroking his forearms to calm him down and reassure him.

"Yeah, Willie, what exactly happened?" Alex asked sitting down on the coffee table in front of him, hesitantly reaching out a hand, Willie grabbing it immediately. 'This was what he wanted. Lou was right, he belonged with Alex now.'

There was a shrill screeching noise, causing them all to look up in alarm, "Sorry! Sorry, guys!" Reggie was dragging over one of the chairs from across the room.

Laughter rang out, breaking the tension from all the questions hovering in the room. Reggie settled himself in the chair he had pulled up next to the end of the couch by Willie and Alex, and they all relaxed a bit, ready to listen to Willie's story.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So, I imagine Lou as a benevolent entity, a ghost, maybe something more? It's not really important after this. Lou is running a business with the clubs (there are many locations) but revenue is from the lifers- not the ghosts, there are plenty of ghosts that want to stay and hang out at the clubs, they don't need to be cursed. Caleb was being really naughty, so now he has to face the consequences.


	11. Part Onze

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just pure fluff, Ray is the best dad ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome one and all, to an addition of 'I watched the news so I ended up drinking' (I live in the US). And now I will attempt to write a coherent chapter.' ;)

Part Onze

\-------------------------------------------

  
The band and Willie were comfortably chatting, once Willie had finished his story, they all had universally agreed to just be grateful for Lou and the relief of not needing to worry about Caleb or the stamps anymore.

  
The loud noise of a truck backing up outside the studio caught their attention, and opening the doors they found Ray and Carlos in the driveway, directing some movers from the furniture store on unloading a large dining table.

"Guys! Look what Dad and I picked out!" Carlos was bouncing with happy enthusiasm.

"Um, you bought a table?" Julie looked askance at Ray.

"Well, now that the boys are eating with us we needed a bigger table, it's not feasible to squeeze all 6 of us, sometimes 7 with Flynn, around a four person table!"

"Eight, it's actually eight." Luke spoke up, quiet but firm.

"What?" Ray turned to him, tilting his head in confusion, he was sure he had counted correctly.

Luke gestured to Alex and Willie, both of them a little unsure.

"Oh." Ray was surprised, but he took in Willie's cracked helmet and then registered their clasped hands slightly hidden between and behind them, " _Oh_. Then eight it is! Since it's getting late I'm going to order pizza tonight, please put your preferences in with Carlos!" He grinned at all of them, nodding at Luke, impressed by the care the boys showed for each other.

  
All the boys were once again overwhelmed by Julie's dad. Alex was particularly affected, his dad would have lost his mind, either screaming or very specifically ignoring Willie. Or both.

"I seriously underestimated Ray, and I'm sorry I teased you about hanging out with him." Alex leaned over and murmured to Reggie. 

Reggie took in his expression of awe and remorse and just clapped a hand to Alex's shoulder. They didn't always need words.

\------------------------------------------------

While they waited for the table to be moved inside and set up, and the pizza to be ordered, the band decided it was time to show Willie a song or two. He had only seen Alex play at the club when Caleb was trying to force the guys, he had never seen 'Julie and the Phantoms' in action for real.

  
"What song should we play, Alex? You want to show your solo off from 'Stand Tall' maybe?" Julie smiled at Luke as he made sure to include Alex in any decision, was it any wonder how she felt about him?

"Uh, um, I don't know."

"Come on, Hotdog! Let's see what you got!"

Alex blushed and caved under the agreement and encouraging cheers from everyone supporting Willie's request.

"Yeah, let's do it."

By mutual understanding, Luke moved over next to Julie's keyboard to simply share her mic, she could hold it for him for his verse and then they would be sharing it anyway. That left a clear view for Willie to watch Alex behind the drum set, from his seat in the chair by the couch that Reggie had moved earlier.

Julie's fingers skillfully pressed the keys, this may not be the Orpheum, but damn if this, having her band already around her, and the faint heat of Luke hovering near her left shoulder, wasn't even better.

"Don't blink, no I don't want to miss it..."

\-------------------------------------------------------

  
Willie was blown away. He had seen the guys playing under Calebs compulsion, but as good as they were there, it was nothing compared to the passion and joy suffusing every word and note as they played for him, for FUN. 

And Alex could SING. Willie had to fan himself a little bit, not that he wasn't already a little warm from the fireworks of Julie and Luke staring into each other's eyes as they shared the mic. 

He jumped up and applauded like crazy as they finished. "You guys are _SO GOOD_. I can totally see why Caleb wanted you. But even then, it was nothing like this! And, Hotdog! You are incredible!"

Alex ducked his head, his face bright red, uncomfortable with the praise. Something loosened inside him, though. It was like this moment, with these specific people, unlocked a layer of tension inside him that he hadn't even known was there. Especially when he looked up to extra applause from the doorway, Ray and Carlos beaming at the band.

"Fantastic as always! The pizza should be here in about 5 minutes, kids. Let's get inside and wash hands and everything, okay?" Ray told them.

Julie turned off the keyboard and gave him a side hug on the way towards the house, Luke following her. Reggie put his bass down and fist-bumped Carlos, then hugged Ray as well, cheering "Pizza!"

Carlos trailed behind Reggie, asking him about if he had seen some movie yet.

Ray stayed, waiting for Alex and Willie. 

"Thanks dude! Pizza is awesome!" Willie threw a hand up and gave Ray a high-five as he bounded past.

Alex was left, slower to get out from behind the drum set. "Um, thanks for being cool with Willie, Mr. Molina."

"Alex." Ray said kindly, "You can call me Ray, and you never have to feel like you can't be yourself in this house, okay?"

Tears pricked at Alex's eyes. That was the only thing he had ever wanted to hear from his parents.

Ray saw and reached out to embrace him, thinking to himself, 'I will do whatever it takes for these boys, Rose, I promise. I think you sent them to help Julie, but maybe you sent them so they could have some help too, and I promise I will give it to them.'

Alex sniffled a bit and squeezed Ray tight for a moment, before stepping back with a deep breath. "Th-thank you."

"Let's go get some pizza, huh?"

"Yeah, that sounds good."

\--------------------------------------------------------

The pizza was a hit, but the table even more so. Ray sat at one end just enjoying the boisterous atmosphere. He loved quiet family dinners, but this was absolutely okay, too.

As the pizza disappeared and everyone slowly quieted, full and content, he cleared his throat, "Julie, I'm still holding you to your promise that school comes first, so make sure your homework is done, and you guys can pick a short movie, _IF_ you start it in the next half hour. I want everyone to bed at a reasonable hour, I saw you guys sleeping last night, so you must need it. Carlos, depending on the movie we''ll see about your bedtime."

"Thanks Ray!" Three voices chorused.  
"You're dope Julie's dad!" Willie liked this guy.  
"Of course Papi!" Julie's smile was appreciative.  
"Yay, thanks dad!" Carlos beamed.

He laughed a little, three '90s ghosts, one from the early 2000s, and his two kids from now. It certainly wasn't conventional, but it sure was worth it.

\---------------------------------------------------- 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was kinda short, but, again, I never know exactly what will come out when I sit down to type. Apparently I was feeling more 'awesome dad Ray!'


	12. Part Douze

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ray spends some time with Reggie and Luke, and learns all about what Julie glossed over when she told him about them being ghosts. Maybe a surprise appearance at the end?

  
Part Douze

\------------------------------------

  
It was Tuesday and Julie and Carlos had gone to school. Ray was trying to focus on editing his newest batch of photos, but the problem of the boys was nagging at him. They were solid more and more, and other than still being able to teleport at will, they were almost back to alive with most other things. They needed to eat, and sleep, and he's pretty sure they're breathing again.

He was staring at his laptop screen, not really seeing it when Reggie popped in. 

"Ray! Luke is writing another song and Alex and Willie went to have a skateboarding lesson down at the park, is it okay if I hang out in here with you?"

Ray started a bit, blinking and refocusing, his eyes landing on the boy in front of him, "Oh, Reggie. Yes, of course you can."

Just then the doorbell rang and before he could move, Reggie was bouncing over, "I'll get it!"

He opened the door and had a quick conversation, then stepped back in and closed the door with one foot, a large Amazon box in his arms. "Wow, what did you guys order this time?"

Ray was left at a loss. His plans needed to be moved up. If the delivery person could see Reggie, it couldn't wait.

"It doesn't matter Reggie, I need to talk to you about something important."

"O-oh?" Reggie gently set the box down on the couch and shrunk into himself.

"No, Reggie, it's nothing bad! Come here." Ray got up and moved to the couch to sit, moving the Amazon box to the table, and patting the seat next to him.

Reggie reluctantly sunk down on the cushion, his shoulders still slumped and fingers toying with the cuffs of the flannel he was wearing, pulling the sleeves over his hands nervously.

Ray spoke softly, ducking his head to meet Reggie's eyes, deciding not to mention the heartbreaking mannerisms he was seeing. That was a talk for another time. "Hey. I know you guys are ghosts, but since you're solid almost all the time now, and other people like the delivery person can see you, we need to think about getting you guys some paperwork. You can't sign any album contracts if you legally don't exist."

"Wait, really?!" Reggie was shocked, that was not what he was expecting, a smile breaking out, "You really think we're that good?"

Ray chuckled, "Of course. But that's not the issue." He took a deep breath and asked a question that had been haunting him ever since Julie had explained they were ghosts. "Reggie. How did you guys, well..."

"Die?" Reggie was back to normal now, sitting straight up and facing Ray with confidence. "We got food poisoning." His gaze turned distant, "It was actually pretty awful, we were an hour away from the biggest show of our lives, we were supposed to play the Orpheum that night, that's why we thought it was our unfinished business and a way to cross over and escape Caleb. Of course he doesn't matter anymore, Willie has assured us of that."

"Hold on, who's Caleb again?" Ray was slightly confused, there were a few things Julie had really not explained very completely.

"Oh, he's the ghost musician who owns the ghost club, but actually doesn't own it?" Reggie frowned in confusion, he wasn't sure he had quite understood what Willie had explained about all of that.

Ray sighed, "Okay. Reggie, you said Luke is in the studio, right? Let's go out there and you both can tell me the whole story from the beginning. Between the two of you, you can probably remind each other of all the details, and I need to know everything so I can figure out a plan to help you guys."

"Yeah, Luke might be better with the order of things."

\----------------------------------------------------------

They headed out to the studio and sat down with Luke, Ray listening attentively, even learning quite a few things about before the boys died that Julie didn't know. Fairly soon they moved inside to the kitchen and had sandwiches for lunch, and halfway through that is when the last piece of the puzzle fell into place for Ray. 

"Wait, Trevor Wilson was in your band? I knew he started using his middle name when he got his first album contract, but he's never really said why."

"Wait. You _KNOW_ Bobby?!" Luke was pissed, not at Ray, who couldn't have known, but just in general. He and Julie had talked through the stuff about Bobby stealing his songs, but that doesn't mean he still wasn't mad when he thought about it.

"Yes, he and Julie's mom were friends, they never talked about where or when they met, it was a little before I knew her. His aunt and uncle owned this house, that's how we ended up here. They were selling and Rose and I were getting ready to start a family, so we bought it from them. I guess we never really talked about it because it wasn't that interesting. Or it wasn't before. I guess now I know why Rose never got rid of your stuff out in the studio, I had forgotten Trevor asked her to keep it, I never knew why or whose it was."

"Why would he want her to keep our stuff?" Luke was intrigued, despite himself. He had thought Bobby was a good guy, he remembered how his aunt and uncle let them use the studio, even let him and Alex crash there after the blow outs with their parents, him on the couch and Alex up in the loft. Reggie, too, when his parents' fighting got really bad. Bobby never talked about his parents, they had died in a car accident when he was little, and he'd been with his aunt and uncle ever since they'd known him. His aunt and uncle didn't really take much specific interest in Bobby, but they were fine with each other. 

"I'm not really sure. You know what? I think we should go ask him."

"What?!"   
"Really?!"   
Both boys were stunned.

"Look guys, as I was telling Reggie before we came out here, you guys are more solid and visible, and quite frankly, more ALIVE every day now. You sleep and eat, you might even start aging. We have to find a way to get you some legal, or mostly legal, paperwork or things are going to get really messy. Trevor could be a big help with that." Ray held up a hand as Luke opened his mouth to protest, " _YOU CAN"T SIGN A RECORD DEAL AS A GHOST_. Or maybe even some other things eventually?" He raised an eyebrow, and Luke knew exactly what, or rather _who_ , Ray was referring to.

Luke's mouth snapped shut and he blushed a little. Those were VERY good points. If he was lucky enough to be given the time to stick around and be as close to alive again as possible, then yes, a record deal was big, but so were a few other things he had barely allowed himself to even remotely dream about.

Reggie snickered into his hand at Luke's expression. 

"So are we agreed? We go see Trevor?" Ray looked at them expectantly.

"Yeah, I guess I do want to hear him explain about stealing our songs, and yet hanging onto our stuff." Reggie nodded in agreement with Luke's statement.

  
\------------------------------------------------------------- 

Ray left a note for Julie and Carlos, since it was now early afternoon, and he had Reggie leave one for Alex and Willie. He first told Luke to do it, but then he saw his handwriting. 

"How do you ever read the lyrics you write?" Ray asked Luke, thoroughly amused, as he drove them over to Trevor's.

Luke pouted a little in the back seat, his arms crossed over his chest. He had lost 'shotgun' to Reggie, and also, ever since the 'Julie and the Fat Ones' mishap, he was a little sensitive about this. "I just have to write so fast when I'm trying to get a song out of my head and onto the page, I don't have time to write all fancy and clear."

That caused Ray to pause and stop teasing, "Well, your songs are amazing, so I guess your handwriting doesn't really matter when it comes right down to it."

The beaming smile that spread across Luke's face at the compliment made Ray's heart ache a little. Luke had opened up a little about his parents, and even hesitantly showed him some of his early draft pages for 'Unsaid Emily' as he and Reggie told him about everything. He had also gleaned a bit more about Reggie and Alex's situations, and he was even more invested in being there for these boys.

\-------------------------------------------------------

Ray pulled up to the gate at Trevor's, he couldn't call him Bobby, he wanted to go in with an open mind and 'Bobby' had hurt his boys, so Trevor it was.

"Ray Molina. Is Julie with you?" Trevor's voice sounded a bit unsteady, almost like he had been crying?

"No, I just need to talk to you about something, it's rather important." Ray spoke into the microphone by the gate's security camera.

"Come on in. I suppose it's finally time to come clean. It's good to see you, Reggie, Luke." His voice cracked a little at their names.


	13. Part Treize

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The confrontation with Bobby.

  
Part Treize

  
\--------------------------------------------------

"----"

"----"

Luke and Reggie didn't know what to say, Bobby- Trevor, could _see_ them.

As they drove through the gate and up the long driveway, Luke leaned forward and squeezed Reggie's shoulder, "You should probably go find Alex. I didn't want to mess up his date with Willie, but he needs to be here."

"Got it." 

"Wait Reg, tell Willie to go on back to the house and ask Julie to start dinner, there's stuff for enchiladas in the fridge, and she makes them almost as good as her mom did." 

Reggie smiled and nodded, popping away, leaving the seatbelt still buckled across the seat.

"Bobby sounded....upset?" Luke was pensive.

"We'll hear him out, it'll be good to have everything in the open between you guys." Ray parked the SUV, and he and Luke got out. Immediately the front door opened, and Bobby- no TREVOR, Luke reminded himself, stepped out.

"Where did Reggie go?"

"He went to get Alex. We all want to hear your excuse for stealing our music." Luke's voice betrayed his anger, although he did manage to keep from yelling.

Bobby's reaction, however, came so far out of left field, Luke could barely comprehend what was happening. And he was definitely Bobby again, not Trevor.

\---------------

Luke almost went to his knees, as Bobby flung himself into Luke, hugging him tight and sobbing into his shoulder.

"You guys all died and _LEFT_ me! I was a mess! I spent three _YEARS_ trying to drink away the guilt of not having gone to eat with you! I didn't _MEAN_ to steal your songs, I just got mixed up with a really shady producer, and I didn't read the contract, and I'M SO SORRY!"

'Well,' thought Ray, 'That I _really_ did not see coming.'

\--------------

Reggie found Alex and Willie, and passed on the message from Ray. Willie happily popping back to the Molina house, and Reggie and Alex popping to Bobby- no, Trevor's. Only to find a crying Bobby, yup, definitely Bobby now, being maneuvered into the backseat of Ray's SUV by Luke, Ray hovering in case he needed to help.

"What is going on?" Alex was so confused, Reggie hadn't explained very well about what they were doing.

"I was gone for like 2 minutes! Why is he crying? Did Luke punch him? Are we kidnapping him?!"

A watery laugh broke through Bobby's tears, "I missed you guys _SO MUCH_." And then he was crying again.

"Is he having a mental break? Do we need to, like, call his therapist?" Alex was mad about the stolen songs, but if seeing his dead bandmates was going to lead to Bobby needing to be _committed_ , that was a little too far, he thought.

"It's fine, we're going to bring him to our house and let him tell his story. There is obviously _a lot_ that happened to him when you boys died." Ray motioned Alex and Reggie to get in the car and he slipped back behind the wheel.

\-------------------------------------------------

Bobby had mostly calmed down by the time they got home, just a few sniffles now and then. He had hugged Alex as soon as he'd climbed into the seat beside him, and then proceeded to cry on his shoulder for at least half the drive. 

Alex had just stared wide-eyed between Luke and Reggie as he gingerly patted Bobby on the back. His face saying _'What.The.Hell.'_ Luke could only respond with one of complete shock, and Reggie just kept glancing behind, to them in the back seat, with confusion and concern.

  
Ray parked and they all got out, Bobby catching Reggie in a hug this time, with a few more tears falling. "It's, okay? Bobby?" Reggie was nonplussed.

"That's it." Luke was done with this. He took Bobby's arm as he pulled back from Reggie, and tugged him inside behind Ray, Alex and Reggie trailing after. He steered Bobby right into the living room and gently shoved him down onto the couch, sitting on the table in front of it. "Bobby. Take a deep breath with me. In... and out.... Good. Now, can you start at the beginning? What happened after we got sick and they called the ambulance?" His hands were gripping Bobby's shoulders, steadying him.

"O-okay. I was still chatting with Rose, but then there was a big commotion and sirens, and they cancelled the concert. The manager came over and told me they took you guys to the hospital, but it didn't look good. I was freaking out. Rose was really nice, she helped me pack up all our stuff and load it back in the van. I would have just left it and gone straight to the hospital, but I knew they probably wouldn't tell me anything, and I figured you guys would kill me if I didn't take care of your instruments." He laughed darkly at the irony. "I was a basket case by the time we were done, so Rose offered to drive me home in the van. We got back here to the studio and my aunt and uncle were watching out the window and waiting. The hospital had a copy of your 'Missing Person' poster, Luke. They called your parents, but all three of you had been DOA. They called my house right away, since I was the only one missing, so when I got home my aunt told me you guys were gone. 'They're dead, Bobby, I'm sorry.' all matter-of-fact." He paused to take a shuddering breath. The room was silent around he and Luke, everyone listening intently, afraid to make any noise and interrupt. Julie hugged Carlos close to her in the kitchen, in case she needed to cover his ears.

"I just went numb. Rose tried to talk to me, but I was shutting down. She gave me her number and address and let me know she would listen if I ever wanted to talk, but I couldn't, not then. She got a cab and left at my insistence. And I just unloaded the van, put all your instruments up in the loft carefully. I wanted it to be nightmare, a mistake, and I knew you would be mad if I didn't take care of your stuff. But then it started to sink in, so I went up to my room, packed a bag and got in the van and just drove. I thought I could run away, just pretend it never happened. I travelled around, did odd jobs, serving and bussing at restaurants here and there, and drinking. I sent a few postcards, to my aunt and uncle, and to Rose, just to say I was fine. But it took me three years to finally decide to try to sober up and attempt to face what happened. I came home, and I went up to the loft and got out my guitar. I still had the music we had been working on for the album we wanted to record after the Orpheum concert, and I decided to sign up for an open mic night and play one of our songs. I wanted to do it to remember you guys, as a personal tribute. But after I was done, a producer came up to me, he was kinda shifty, but he offered me a chance to audition for him at his office. It was the chance for a new start." He coughed a little, and Luke looked up and quietly asked Alex to grab him a glass of water, which he jumped to do.

Luke took it from Alex and handed it to Bobby, "Thank you, Luke." 

After a short wait while he drank a few sips, Bobby took another deep breath, as if to steel himself for the next part, and continued.

"I played him one of my own songs, you know we all had some stuff we had worked on ourselves and hadn't shared with each other yet, but he didn't like it. He wanted more like 'Long Weekend', the one I had played the night he gave me his card. I told him it wasn't mine. But when I explained about what happened to you guys, he said we could just give you writing credit and I could still record any songs like that as mine. I thought that would be okay, you wanted your music to reach people, and I could do that for you this way. But I was stupid. I didn't read the contract well enough, I was too excited. It gave him control over practically everything about me, and my music, for the next five years. He didn't put your names on the songs, and he told me I wasn't allowed to even mention you guys again, or I would be in breach of contract and he would sue me. I was barely 20, and was still trying to get through each day without drinking, I didn't know what to do, so I just went along with it. I had called Rose when I got back, and we had become pretty good friends, but I never told her about any of this stuff, I was scared to confide in anyone. She met Ray, and they got together, and the five years of my contract slowly went by. I ended up being lucky, the producer had a minor heart attack right when my contract expired, and I signed with someone else before he could do anything. I was still too scared to come clean, though. Especially because that was when Carrie's mom, who I had been seeing for about a year, told me she was pregnant. I couldn't afford to lose everything right when I was going to be a dad. And so I ended up trying to rationalize what I had done, and going to therapy to help with the guilt." 

Ray softly spoke up, "That was when Rose had also just gotten pregnant with Julie, and we bought the house from your aunt and uncle. I suppose it makes sense why you left the boys instruments in the studio, but didn't want to get rid of them, asking Rose to keep them there. They were a reminder of your friends."

Bobby nodded deeply, "Yeah... yeah. I couldn't have them around me, but I couldn't let them go, either."

Luke looked up and made eye contact with Reggie and Alex, tipping his head to gesture them over to the couch. They walked over, and in unison all three boys enveloped Bobby in a group hug. They weren't mad about their music anymore, they were kinda grateful the three of them had died together, while poor Bobby hadn't had anyone to be alive with.

\--------------------------------------

The atmosphere in the house got considerably lighter when the timer went off, and Julie yelled, "My enchiladas!" She dashed over to the oven to make sure they hadn't burned.

Everyone laughed, Luke and they guys tugging Bobby off the couch so they could all sit down at the still new family table, and have dinner. Alex introduced Willie, and soon they were all talking over each other, complimenting Julie's food, and trying to explain to Bobby about how they became ghosts, and why they seemed to be almost alive again now.

\--------------------------------------

After dinner, Ray pulled Bobby aside. "We need to talk about a few things. The boys need paperwork, documents. Random people are starting to see them, Reggie even spoke to a delivery person and took a package at the door this morning. Pretending they're holograms of guys from Sweden or something isn't going to last."

"Whatever they need. I need to make things up to them."

"Great, let's start planning tomorrow."

\---------------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it crossed my mind that Alex, Luke, and Reggie all had each other when they died. But Bobby had lost ALL THREE of his best friends. And thus, this was born.


	14. Part Quatorze

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is tooth-rotting fluff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess you guys get TWO chapters tonight, since I started writing early and I felt bad that the last chapter was a little heavy. Make sure you've read Part Treize first!!! 
> 
> So here's some delicious fluff, it's shorter, but I think I gave MYSELF cavities with this.

Part Quatorze

\-----------------------------------------

Ray had left to drive Bobby home, the kids deciding it was definitely a comedy movie night. Julie went upstairs to her room while they all argued over what to pick, just reminding them not to let Carlos convince them to pick something that was too old for him. She needed to call Flynn and fill her in quickly, she didn't want to be accused of keeping things from her bestie again.

"Wait... what?! I mean, girl, I know you told me that Trevor was Bobby, and that Luke really wrote all those songs, but whoo! And the stuff about your MOM?! No wonder those boys are connected to you." Flynn sighed, "You know, Julie, I left the other day thinking you all were going crazy, just adding the ghost boys to the family like it wasn't problem they were FREAKIN' GHOSTS. But. I was wrong. I can admit it. They are lucky to have found you." She laughed, "Now go cuddle up to your cutie ghost boyfriend for the movie, and I will see you tomorrow!"

Julie blushed, "Thanks Flynn. I'll see you at school tomorrow."

\----------------------------------

When she got back downstairs, they had the movie ready to go, and Luke was stretched out on the loveseat, saving her spot. "Hey Jules, we picked 'Pirates of the Caribbean', Carlos promises it's good," He smiled at her as she sat down and curled into his chest. "It is a good one, nice choice Carlos!" She winked at her brother.

"I died right after this came out, but I definitely snuck in the theater as a ghost to watch the two sequels." Willie fist-bumped Carlos, they had bonded over a shared love of reality TV at dinner. Willie also loved 'Ghost Hunters', and practically any food competition shows.

Julie sighed in contentment as the movie began, observing Reggie laying next to Carlos on the floor, Alex and Willie close together on the couch. Those two weren't quite cuddling, but they were holding hands, and they looked comfortable with that. She had to smirk a little at how they had all specifically left Ray's chair open for him, her ghosts had universally adopted her dad as their own, and it was adorable.

"What's that smirk for?" Luke's voice was barely a whisper next to her ear, his breath moving a few strands of her hair, and she shivered involuntarily. "Are you cold? Here." He sat them up and slipped off his flannel shirt, "Arms out, Jules." 

Well, she would never say no to _THAT_. She fit her hands into the sleeves, thinking, 'Good, now he was just in his t-shirt with no sleeves, that was better.' She blushed a little. ' _Stop_ _it,_ Julie, watch the movie,' she told herself.

Luke wrapped the flannel close on her and curled his arms back around, snuggling her tight to his chest again. "Now tell me why you were smirking."

'Oh. _Oh_. What was that.. was he asking her something? ...it doesn't matter right now...' she thought, because until now she hadn't noticed, but the boys didn't smell, at all. However, now that she was wearing Luke's shirt, _SHE COULD SMELL HIM_. 

And it was _completely_ messing with her head. He smelled _SO GOOD_. Like faint cologne, and sunshine, and _LUKE_.

"Julie?" He sounded a little worried, since she hadn't responded to his question.

"Just shut up for a minute, Luke." She turned a little in his embrace and buried her face in his neck, just breathing deeply. 'I _never_ want to move from this spot right here.' She mused to herself.

"Um, o-kay?" He didn't mind her cuddling closer, not at all! But he was a little confused as to why she seemed to be, well, was she _smelling_ him?

He just held her and waited for a few moments. Something happened in the movie and everyone gasped, he glanced over, but then Julie moved her head and peeked up at him, her eyes hazy and unfocused, but smiling so happily that he couldn't help smiling back. "What is up with you Jules?"

She blushed hotly, but whispered an answer this time, "I can _SMELL_ you. It makes you feel even more real, it's _amazing_."

He jaw dropped a little in surprise, "It's a good thing? I don't stink, right? I mean, I haven't had a shower in 25 years," he joked.

"No, you do not stink, but you may want to start showering again, since it might be like the rest of this stuff, like needing to sleep and eat again." She teased him a little back.

He chuckled lightly, "Fair enough. But, so, it is a good thing?"

"Luke. It's really, _REALLY_ good." She leaned up and gently pressed her lips to his, deciding showing was better then telling. He kissed her back right away, keeping it soft and sweet for a few long seconds before they both pulled away to breathe, and Julie tucked her face back between his neck and shoulder.

"Okay. _OKAY_. Good to know."

They shifted a bit so he could see the TV easier, and they appeared to now be focused on the movie, although they were both actually lost in their own little world, wearing matching small, slightly goofy, smiles.

\-----------------------------------------

And that was how Ray found them all when he got back, enraptured by the sword fight between Jack Sparrow and Will Turner in the blacksmith shop.


	15. Part Quinze

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Julie's at school and the guys take care of Luke when something happens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N & Warning: There are mentions of being sick and throwing up in this one, just FYI.
> 
> Actually mostly fluffy, aside from that. 

Part Quinze 

\---------------------------------------------------------------------

The next day was Wednesday, and Ray went to Bobby's as soon as Julie and Carlos had gone to school. Luke got up to say good morning, he hugged Julie and wished her a good day before grabbing some Pop-Tarts and juice for breakfast, then going back to the studio to sleep for a couple more hours. All the guys were crashing out there now, Ray had gotten them some inflatable mattresses and sleeping bags, but Luke still stayed on the couch. He ate, and then lay back down, pulling his blanket around himself.

It was about an hour and a half later when Willie heard something and woke up, he was barely able to believe he could sleep again. He could hear Reggie snoring from his spot up in the loft, but the noise that had awoken him was coming from the small bathroom in the back of the studio. He got up quietly and stepped around Alex on his mattress, noticing that the couch was empty, just a crumpled blanket that looked like it had been thrown off in haste. 

The bathroom door was slightly cracked open, and he carefully pushed it open a little more to peer in. "Luke? You okay dude?"

A cough, and Luke mumbled from his seat on the floor, "No. I don't know what's wrong." He gasped, clutching his stomach, then shuddered and dry heaved over the toilet. "I feel awful, I'm so nauseated, but nothing comes up." He lay his head on his arm, "I know we've started to need the bathroom and whatever, now that we're eating, but I _HATE_ being sick." He heaved again, and coughed, before slumping to the floor and pressing his forehead to the tile.

Willie had moved inside, grabbing a washcloth and turning on the sink to cold. "I'm sorry. Being sick is something I really haven't missed as a ghost." He wrung out the washcloth a little, and knelt down to put it on the back of Luke's neck. "Any idea what it could be? Do you think you could have actually gotten the flu or something?"

Luke just groaned, lurching back up to dry heave again. Willie tried to help brace him, and patted his back a little.

"What's going on?" Alex and Reggie were both at the door, rubbing sleep from their eyes.

"Luke is sick, not sure why." Willie spoke for him, since he was curled over his arms on the toilet, and not in any shape to reply himself.

Alex started fidgeting, "Could it be Caleb again? I know you said it was over, but..."

" _Gaahhh_ , no. This is not that. It kinda feels familiar, in the worst way. God, I hate being..." Luke trailed off as his stomach turned over again, just trying to breathe through it.

Reggie was staring at the whole scene, Luke was right, it _DID_ feel kinda familiar...

\---------------------FLASHBACK--------------------

It was the summer after 6th grade and he, Alex, and Luke had been hanging out at the beach all day. On the way home they stopped at the new smoothie stand and each got one to have as they walked home. They were having a sleepover at Luke's house that night, it was before the band had even really been an idea, so Luke's house was their favorite place to hang out. They hadn't even met Bobby yet, that would happen the first day of 7th grade, right after this summer, when they went to middle school.

To Reggie, Luke's house was the best place to be. Alex's house was okay, but there was just a vague tension, his parents were always on him about his interests, he hadn't come out to them yet, but it was like they suspected something. And his own house, well, even then his parents were starting to fight. It wasn't bad yet, but Reggie still preferred not to be there if he could help it.

So the boys spent most of their time at Luke's, playing video games and watching movies. They had all started music lessons, and they jammed together once in awhile, too, they weren't that good yet, but they had fun.

Now, on this particular day, they had gotten home late, and Luke's mom gave them the _LOOK_ when they stumbled through the door, laughing loudly at some joke or another. They quieted down immediately, and she sent them to clean up and get to bed, since they had to be up early for the first day of soccer camp the next day. None of them were very good, but it was something to keep them busy in the summer, their parents had decided.

They went to bed, but about two hours later, Reggie woke up to Luke stumbling over him in the dark as he ran for the bathroom. He had gotten up and gone quickly to get Emily, Luke was almost never sick and he was a little worried. 

She sat with Luke on the floor in the bathroom, rubbing his back, while Reggie hovered in the doorway. He was obviously sick, but he wasn't throwing anything up, just dry-heaving. Suddenly, Emily looked up at Reggie and asked him, "Did you boys eat anything different today?"

"Um, yeah, I guess, we got fruit smoothies at that new place on the way home from the beach."

Her expression cycled through a few different emotions, she looked enlightened, exasperated, then slightly amused, before settling into sympathetic. 

"Baby, you forgot to ask if they put pineapple in them didn't you?" She questioned Luke, smoothing his hair out of his face. 

He looked confused for a second, before groaning and burying his face in his arms.

"What does pineapple have to do with anything?" Reggie asked Emily.

"He's allergic, or at least sensitive to it. It upsets his stomach like this, so he knows he's supposed to be careful." She stared down at the back of Luke's head, with a rather pointed tone to her voice.

"'Mm sorry Mom. I got the strawberry flavor, I didn't even think about them putting pineapple juice in it."

She sighed, "It's okay baby. Reggie, why don't you head back to bed, I got this."

She smiled at Reggie and waved a hand, shooing him out of the bathroom.

\-------------------PRESENT---------------------

"Luke. Did you drink the juice Ray has in the fridge?"

" _Aaahhh_ , yes? I had some with my Pop-tarts when I said goodbye to Julie before she left for school?"

Reggie shook his head. He totally understood how Emily felt that night, exasperated, amused, and sympathetic.

"Luke, that stuff is a juice blend. So there's pineapple juice in it, you doofus."

Luke dry heaved again, then "Are you _FREAKING KIDDING ME_?!"

Reggie couldn't help but laugh, Alex joining in, he had heard the story the next morning back then, and they had all been super careful for months after that. Luke had only had a few reactions in the years since then, and then they were dead, so it wasn't a complete surprise that they had somewhat forgotten about it.

Willie smiled at the obvious affection between the guys, he was happy they had easily admitted him in their group, even if they still didn't know each other very well yet. 

"Reggie, you guys have got to tell me this story. Pineapple juice bringing Luke to his knees? I thought only Julie could do that?" He smirked playfully.

"Nice, Willie!" Reggie leaned over for a high five, and Alex clutched the door frame as he doubled over in laughter.

Luke just moaned, and slumped over to press his forehead to the floor again. He _HATED_ being sick.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------

Luke was lucky he had only had a small glass of the juice. By the time Julie and Carlos got home from school and she came out to the studio for band practice, he was out of the bathroom and back on the couch. He had water and an assortment of dry toast and plain crackers in front of him, courtesy of the guys, and they were all gathered around him as he napped, watching a movie quietly on Julie's laptop.

"What are you guys doing? Usually you're already practicing when I get home."

"Shhh." Alex presses his finger to his lips, and gestured at Luke, laying curled up with his head right up next to Alex's leg where he sat on the couch, Luke's eyes closed and breathing deep and slow as he slept. Reggie was at the other end of the couch, at Luke's feet, making sure he didn't kick his blanket off, and Willie was sitting on the floor in front, obviously in charge of the water and food, in case Luke wanted anything.

Julie blinked and her expression changed to concern, "Is he okay? What happened?"

Reggie stood up carefully, Alex and Willie following his lead. They gathered around Julie by the studio door and explained about Luke's pineapple thing. She looked horrified and told the guys to go throw out the rest of the juice so it wouldn't happen again. They chuckled at her protective reaction, and told her they would take care of it. 

"We'll switch our movie to the TV in the living room, we officially turn over his care until dinner to you." Alex gave her a cheeky salute, and the guys popped to the kitchen, leaving Julie alone with Luke.

She smiled affectionately, walking over and taking Alex's seat near his head. Unable to stop herself, she ran her hand through his hair gently. He looked so young, and innocent, and _adorable_ when he was asleep. 

"Mmhmm, Jules...." He mumbled, eyes heavy as he blinked up at her, before cuddling closer to her and lifting his head to set it in her lap. "That feels nice. I was sick today." He pouted, and she had to fight back a giggle. 

"I heard. Are you starting to feel better though?"

"Mumph, I dunno." He went full-out puppy eyes on her and she caught her breath. 'I thought it before and I stand by it, those eyes are absolutely criminal.' 

"I missed you while you were at school."

Her heart melted even more, and she bent to kiss his cheek, "I'm here now. I'm going to put a new movie on, and you should go back to sleep, okay?"

"M'Kay Jules." He gave her a beaming, sleepy smile, and she couldn't help but lean down again, this time softly kissing his lips for a moment, before grabbing the laptop, and going back to running her one hand through his hair, to help him fall back asleep.

\-------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Poor Luke. I gave him my allergy/sensitivity, and I had this exact thing happen to me. I got a strawberry lemonade slushy drink thing, it was like 48 ounces and I drank it ALL. I thought I was being careful, but as I learned later, the place I got it tends to use pineapple juice to help with texture- keeping the slushiness slushy. I was sick for three days, on vacation. It was the worst.


	16. Part Seize

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke and Julie have a date. It's short, but cute, I hope.

  
Part Seize

\-------------------------------------------------------------------

The next couple days passed without incident, Luke felt better and they had band practice after school Thursday, instead. Ray had some lengthy phone conversations with Bobby, who had put out some feelers with some.... not so scrupulous... people, that he had come in contact with as a big musician. Life was moving along for everyone in their, not-so-little anymore, found family.

Friday afternoon arrived, and Luke was almost vibrating in anticipation. He had gotten over being sick, and this was the first free night he and Julie had had since he had become solid most of the time, and they were _'officially'_ together. All of the family time and movie nights over the last week where he got to snuggle with Julie were amazing, but, well, he wanted to have a night with her to himself. Alex and Willie got to go on dates all day since neither of them needed to be at school, but Julie DID. And Luke was _so_ excited to have a night alone with her.

He wasn't sure what it was. He just knew that tonight he wanted to take her on a date. A _real_ date. He went to the florist and got a bouquet of dahlias, managing to be solid enough to pay with most of the money left in his ghost wallet from 1995, and he begged Ray to help him with some portable food he could use for a picnic on the beach. He had the flowers with him when he asked for help, he didn't realize, but that softened Ray even more than the (odd, but insistent) understanding of Luke he already felt. (Those flowers showed the innate care Luke had for Julie, and Ray couldn't have refused him anything.)

\-------------------------------------

Julie got home from school and dropped her backpack in her room. Homework could wait until at least tomorrow, it was Friday and she just wanted to relax.

As she walked down the stairs, Luke appeared in front of her, wearing a nice red and black flannel, with dark washed jeans and a black undershirt (she couldn't quite tell if it was sleeveless or a regular t-shirt), and a black beanie on his head. She barely noticed this for a long second, her focus on the flowers he was offering to her, it was a mix of dahlias in a few different colors. Julie was astounded at the care he had apparently taken to choosing them, red, purple, white and blue.

\-------

_"Red: symbolizes strength and power that we want to give to the person who is receiving this flower. Color red in general symbolizes love and passion, but it can also be a symbol of power, strength and importance. We gift red Dahlias to people we care about and who we want to see rising up from the ashes. They are very important to us and we want to see them succeed in all areas of life. You can gift red Dahlias to your partner or a friend who is going through some difficult moments in life. Bouquet of red Dahlias is going to send a clear message of support and love that can’t be better expressed by any other flower."_

_"Purple: symbolizes royalty, dignity and grace, so you can gift the purple Dahlia to any person who represents perfection in your eyes. Gift this beautiful flower to someone you love and someone who is in your eyes the representation of grace and dignity."_

_"White: symbolizes purity and focus. White Dahlias can be given to anybody you love or want to surprise. Color white symbolizes purity, faith and clean soul, so this is the perfect gift to give to someone you find to be innocent and pure soul."_

_"Blue: symbol of a new beginning and a new chapter. This flower color is the perfect gift for someone who is turning his/her entire life around and beginning a new chapter in life."_

\--------

"What's this for?" Julie asked, already accepting the bouquet and burying her face in it to smell with an adoring expression.

Luke blushed a little, and his hand went up to rub the back of his neck in a familiar, slightly nervous manner. "I wanted to surprise you. Will you come out with me tonight Jules? Just the two of us?"

His impossibly enchanting eyes pulled her in, and she was only too happy to say, "Yes."

His smile lit up every corner of her heart, and then he took her hand and tugged her out the front door, waving goodbye to her dad with a call of "Thanks, Ray! I promise we won't be out too late!" 

  
He may _technically_ still be a ghost, but, well. Julie could not _possibly_ have cared less. Luke was perfect for her.

\---------------------------------------------------

  
Luke walked her to a quiet section of the beach. There was a blanket laid out with cheese and crackers, and the option of some deli meat, along with some apple and peach slices. He had even persuaded Ray to get him a bottle of non-alcoholic sparkling grape juice. 

They sat down and just nibbled the food and talked, about anything and everything, while looking at the ocean and the stars. And when Julie shivered a bit at the breeze off the water, Luke was only too pleased to lend her his flannel shirt.

Julie was delighted to accept, although she would probably never admit it, it was partly because his sculpted arms were now on display (yup, the black undershirt was sleeveless, as she suspected!). She was equally pleased when he also wrapped those arms around her and leaned them back to lay on the blanket so they could look at the stars more comfortably.

\------------------------------------------------------

Julie had started to drift off to sleep, but Luke wasn't having that. He had promised Ray that they would be home not too late that night, so he gently shook her and made quick work of the picnic clean up. Then he grasped her hand, fingers intertwined, and willed them back to the Molina front door. 

"-----Um. Luke how did you do that?" Julie was wide awake now.

"I just wanted to...?"

She looked at him in incredulity. "You teleported us BOTH, as in yourself and me, a LIFER, home, and all you have to say is, you _'wanted to'_?!"

He shrugged sheepishly, "...Yes?"

"-------"

The door opened, and Carlos stared at them imposingly, or as close as he could as a little brother. "Are you going to come finish watching 'Dead Man's Chest' with us or what?"

  
Luke jumped at the distraction, _"Yes,_ yes we totally are. Come on Jules!"

She just rolled her eyes and shook her head, slightly vexed at his deflection, 'I guess we can talk about it tomorrow.'

  
They wouldn't talk about it tomorrow......

\---------------------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (The flower meanings are quoted directly from flowermeanings.org)
> 
> A/N: Okay, I want to say how incredibly grateful and humbled I am to the response to this story. I hadn't written anything for YEARS and aside from my first one-shot for this fandom "Julie's Thoughts," (which I wrote half-drunk), the first chapter of this, which was supposed to be a ONE-SHOT, is something that I was actually kinda proud of, then it mutated into this *thing* and people keep ACTUALLY LIKING it?! So I just want to say thank you, and although I have the next chapter mostly done, I'm not quite ready to post it yet. I'm torn between excited and anxious for the response. But, it SHOULD be up by late morning, unless I decide to add to it. I want to step away and sleep and then read it through for one more edit.
> 
> "Hmmm hmmmmm hmmm..."


	17. Part Dix-sept

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This went longer than I planned. Things happen, and there are some hugs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First things first..... here it is, and without any extra chatter, let's.... start the scene......

  
Part Dix-sept

  
\-----------------------

Even though it had been a late night with everyone staying up to watch both the sequels to 'Pirates of the Caribbean' (not 'On Stranger Tides' yet), Julie was awake early Saturday morning.

There was a nagging feeling permeating her chest. It was a mix of anxious excitement and nausea, and she had no idea what it was about. But something about it told her she _needed_ to get up and go downstairs.

She yawned as she climbed out of bed and threw on her big fuzzy purple robe and her slippers. There were faint sounds of the TV drifting up from the living room, so she idly wondered who else could be up this early. It was 8:00am when she shuffled into the kitchen, quietly raising an eyebrow and asking Carlos, who was sitting on the living room couch, what he was doing up so early.

"Reggie and Alex were telling me about Saturday morning cartoons, I figured I could at least try to capture the idea." He grinned, and Julie felt a tug at her heart. She had missed her brother's carefree attitude, they had all been sleep-walking through life since her mom passed away, but the guys had dragged them back to living. 

"Do you want any cereal Carlos?"

"Sure, Rice Krispies?"

Julie's face split with a smile, "Sure, buddy." She got them each a bowl and brought them over to the couch, sitting down next to him.

  
Then the doorbell rang.

"I got it!" Carlos was up and scampering over before Julie could say a word. Or identify why her heart was suddenly in her throat.

"Um, hello. Is- is Julie Molina here?"

"It's for you Julie!"

Julie was at the door before Carlos even finished speaking, her heart racing, she knew that voice. This must be why she somehow knew she needed to be up this morning.

\------------------------------------------------------

Hello.... _Emily_."

Julie and Luke's mom stared at each other in the doorway. Carlos picked up that something was weird and excused himself, grabbing his bowl of cereal and retreating to his room upstairs.

"Please come in. Can I get you anything, a glass of water?" Julie led her inside to the table and they sat down across from one another.

"N-no, I just wanted to talk to you."

They eyed each other for a long moment, neither sure what the other knew or suspected, or who would be brave enough to break the silence.

Finally Emily sighed and glanced away, looking back with unshed tears in her eyes, she spoke. "I don't know why, but I've had this _unsettled_ feeling ever since you came over and brought Mitch and I Luke's song. You spoke as if you knew him, and I _swear_ I could almost hear him singing the words as I read them. I don't have a lot of regrets in my life, but not listening and supporting my son is one that has haunted me for 25 years. I saw you and your band in a video on YouTube. The lead guitarist, I would swear it's my baby Luke." She paused to take a deep breath and sniffle. "Am I crazy Julie? Please be honest with me."

Julie wasn't sure what to do. Did Luke want his mom to know he was a ghost? Was it even fair to tell her? But.... the guys had been solid for at least a week, and seemed to be coming more alive every day. Wouldn't it be cruel _not_ to tell her?'

As Julie tried to sort through what might be the right thing to do, it was taken out of her hands. Luke walked through the kitchen door, rubbing his eyes and yawning, obviously seeking her out to say good morning.

He froze mid step, as his gaze fell on the person at the table facing away from him, only his eyes moving to meet Julie's over Emily's head as they grew impossibly wide in shock. 

"I honestly am not sure what to say to you right now." Julie finally replied to Emily's query, her eyes meeting Luke's.

  
" _I_ am."

Emily stiffened, almost robotically shifting to look over her shoulder, as Luke approached infinity slowly, tears gathering in his eyes as they locked onto his mom, the chance to speak to her crashing into him.

She inhaled on a gasp of sheer disbelief, "Baby, is it really you?!"

His tiny smile was fragile and unsure, "Yeah mom, it's me."

Emily stood up, sliding her chair away, and reached out with one hand to touch his shoulder.

She hesitated, her hand hovering, just above it.

Then she took a deep breath and set her hand on his shoulder.....and it passed right through.

  
Both of them crumpled to the ground, sobbing in anguish and devastation.

\-------------------------------------------------------

  
"No. No way. Nope." Julie had tears streaming down her cheeks, this was _NOT OKAY_.

She got up and moved around the table, determined to _FIX IT_.

Julie dropped to her knees next to Luke and grabbed his left hand with her right, he was solid to her, and she was _emphatically determined_ to make this work. She wrapped his arm around her shoulder and reached her other hand out to Emily's left hand, and clasping it in hers, she practically yanked the two of them together, using every ounce of focus she had to _will_ them to feel each other.

  
And it.... _worked_.

  
\----------------------------------------------------

The three of them were a bawling mess on the floor for what seemed like ages. And then it got crazier. 

  
Reggie and Alex stumbled through the kitchen door, having left Willie to sleep, and once they registered what was happening, they both threw themselves into the pile, crying as well. 

  
Needless to say, when Ray woke up he came downstairs to one hell of a situation.

\---------------------------------------------------------

"--------"

"Um, Julie? Guys? Would anyone care to introduce me to the lovely lady you're all crying on?"

"Anyone?"

"Oo-kay. Uh, who wants breakfast?"

"No? Not even food? Huh."

Ray shrugged and stepped around everyone to get a cup of coffee in the kitchen. He wasn't dumb, he could see Julie smiling, so he figured he'd let them get it out.

He was leaning against the counter and almost done with his first cup of coffee before everyone finally started to calm down.

Julie carefully pulled back first, unsure if Luke and his mom would still be able to touch if she let go, but it was okay. She let out a soft sigh as the two of them clung together even closer, Reggie and Alex slipping away from the group along with her.

The three of them got up, all instinctively heading to Ray for a reassuring hug. He was happy to provide it, putting his coffee down and pushing it back on the counter out of the way. Julie wrapped her arms around his middle, Reggie and Alex on each side. He held them close for a long moment, then asked again, hoping for an answer this time, "Who is she?"

"Luke's mom." Julie stated it simply, her face still pressed against Ray's chest.

"Oh. _Oh_." For a split second he had been puzzled by the extreme emotional reaction, but then the coffee kicked in and his brain engaged, and he remembered 'Unsaid Emily' and that it had actually been 25 years, the boys were dead, ghosts. It was so easy to forget that when he was chatting with Reggie about his photos, or applauding Alex when he stayed on Willie's skateboard for a whole 10 seconds after an entire day of lessons with Willie trying to teach him. And especially when Luke stumbled into the kitchen in the morning just to say 'Hi, have a good day at school.' to Julie, making her smile bigger than he had seen since her mom passed away.

\-------------------------------------------------------------

"Baby, I'm so sorry."

"I'm the one who's sorry Mom, I should never have left like that."

"I love you, baby, always."

"I love you too Mom, so much."

\----------------------------------------------------------------

Ray decided it was another pancakes type of day, and he swiftly got everything going. Luke and his mom reluctantly picked themselves up after their whispered conversation of apology.

"Ray, this is my mom, Emily Patterson."

"It's nice to meet you Emily. Do you want chocolate chip or plain pancakes?"

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"For everything, even if I don't know what any of it was yet." She smiled at him unsteadily.

"Well, you are very welcome." He smiled back, his eyes reassuring and understanding.

\---------------------------------------------------- 

They ate breakfast, it was a bit subdued, but Carlos had finally wandered back downstairs, and he was great at breaking the tension, helping to tell the story of the boys being ghosts. 

The pressure ratcheted up when breakfast finished, though. Luke may have made up with Emily, and she may have accepted the fact he was a ghost and everything, but there was still his dad, Mitch, to contend with.

"Just come home with me, we can explain, and everything will be fine!" Emily was pleading with Luke, but he wasn't budging. 

"Mom, I can't. He won't just believe like you did. And, well, I don't know if I'm ready. Today was a lot, just seeing you. I could come over tomorrow with Julie, though?" He glanced over this shoulder from his position at the front door with his mom, his eyes asking if she would be willing to do that.

"Of course." Julie moved up beside him, her hand sliding into his and entangling their fingers, squeezing gently in solidarity. 

Emily's eyebrows raised slightly at the action, but she didn't mention it. She sighed out a deep breath, "Okay. It has been a big day, I suppose. And Mitch was always more upset because _I_ was upset, so it might be better if I try to ease him into things. I expect you to be there tomorrow, though!"

"Yes, Mom."

"We will."

"Fine." She reached out and tugged Luke into another tight embrace for a long second, before stepping back and quickly wiping her eyes. "Love you baby, see you tomorrow."

"Love you Mom."

"We'll see you tomorrow." They watched as Emily got in her car and pulled away, then Julie shut the door and led Luke up to her room, communicating with her dad in one look. He just gave her a nod. This wasn't a time to worry about Luke being in her bedroom.

"So Alex, Reggie, what do you say we marathon the Indiana Jones movies? I'll make the popcorn and you go see if Willie is done sleeping in, we should be able to finish all four!"

"Yeah! Wait, four?" Reggie questioned, turning to Carlos. 

Alex shook his head and popped back to the studio to wake Willie up. Maybe he would ask for a hug, it had been a intense morning. 

\-----------------------------------------------------------------

  
Luke and Julie curled up on her bed, facing each other, their arms wrapping them close in a tight embrace. 

"Tell me about her Luke."

He closed his eyes and breathed her in, relaxing at the feeling of her hair brushing against his nose. "She was the best, but she didn't understand how important music was to me. She wanted me to go to college, get a business degree or something first, and there was just no way I was going to do that."

" _Mmhmmm.._ " Julie hummed, just to remind him she was listening, and that he could talk as much as he needed to.

"I actually am kinda excited to see my Dad, we were really close before. We used to go to the beach and listen to all the random musicians playing for tips that we could find. He kinda got it, he knew I should be playing, not going to college. He told me once that if things didn't work out I could always go to college later, but he couldn't really argue with her, not when our fights started getting more and more volatile. I think he knew it was just a matter of time before I ran, and he would have to be there for her. Of course, no one thought I would _die_ before we could make up."

He tugged Julie impossibly closer, his voice breaking a little, "I was going to go see them after the Orpheum, I figured we would be big news the next day and it would make her finally understand. And... we were big news, just for dying, not for playing a breakout show to a sold out crowd."

Julie tilted her head back to catch his eyes, "Why don't we take a nap, and then we can call your mom and tell her we want to go over for dinner tonight instead of tomorrow? I think your dad might take it better than either of you think."

He lips turned up sweetly, in a smaller version of the grin she had concluded was only hers, and she blushed a little and buried her face back in his chest.

  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------

It was late afternoon by the time they woke up, the emotion of the morning having exhausted them.

Julie sent Luke to the studio to use the shower, and change into something for dinner, and she got ready herself. A quick text exchange with Emily, and then she went to talk to her dad.

"Papi, I'm going to go with Luke to his house for dinner tonight, instead of tomorrow."

Ray looked up from 'The Last Crusade' and shared long look with his daughter. "That's fine, mija. Just call me if you need anything, got it?"

"I promise Dad." She leaned over him in his chair and hugged him, "I love you, Papi."

"I love you too."

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  
Julie met Luke in the driveway in front of the studio, and started to hold out her hand, but then abruptly yanked it back, "Are you gonna teleport us there like last night? That was so weird, and we really do have to plan a time to discuss all of these changes that are happening with you guys."

"Do you trust me?" And there was that special grin just for her.

"I hate that you know that." She giggled a little, not really mad at all. He had found her entranced by the new live-action Aladdin when he woke up from his nap with her when he was sick. What could she say? That had been her favorite animated movie when she was little, her mom had liked that Jasmine was always trying to stand up for herself.

"You love it." He took her hands and concentrated, and suddenly they were behind the bushes by his house, where Julie had watched with Alex and Reggie on Luke's birthday.

  
"Her car isn't in the driveway." Luke fidgeted and bounced a bit nervously.

"Luke, I have a feeling this is going to go so much better than you think. I'll go ring the doorbell. You just wait until I wave you over."

"Oo-kay."

\-----------------------------------------

Julie walked up the steps and pressed the doorbell. Footsteps were heard behind the door and then it opened to Mitch's smile of greeting. She smiled back at him, noticing that this was where Luke got his grin, and his hazel eyes.

"Welcome Julie! Emily just stepped out to grab some cinnamon at the store, she wanted to make Luke's favorite apple cider for after dinner tonight. The food's almost done, though, and she should be back any moment." His eyes lifted from hers and glanced behind her, searching. "Is he here? Just invisible or something? I knew it was him the second I saw the video, Emily left the tab open on the computer. She probably thinks, and Luke maybe agrees, that I would be skeptical, but they're both wrong. They both have the same stubbornness and passion that can get the better of them sometimes, too alike when it comes to that. However, I know Luke, and I think I knew the second you came over to give us the song, that you somehow knew him too." 

  
Luke had been waiting just out-of-sight, but this was too much and he flew past Julie and burrowed into his dad's chest, wrapping his arms around in a desperate hug. To his credit, Mitch was barely fazed at all, he just caught Luke and held him close, one hand coming up to run his finger's through his son's hair, in a familiar soothing gesture.

Julie blinked, wait, she had realized that Luke loved it when she did that, but she had always assumed it was something his mom had done. Thinking back, though, his mom had brushed his bangs back that morning, but not this. This was completely a _Mitch_ thing to comfort his son, and it made Julie ache as she suddenly knew why he wrote 'Unsaid Emily' and didn't really mention his dad, because he _didn't need to_ , he knew his dad understood. This hug wasn't really about forgiveness, this was about _missing each other_. Sure, he had said both parents regretted buying him the guitar, but it was suddenly fairly clear his dad had probably only been upset by the rift between Luke and his mom, and he really knew Luke belonged out there playing music.

  
\--------------------------------------

The sound of a car pulling up a few minutes later alerted them to Emily's arrival home, and Mitch motioned Julie inside with him and Luke, the two of them still holding each other. They reluctantly parted, and met Emily as she bustled into the kitchen, telling Luke and Julie to take a seat at the table. She got everything out and ready to serve, then she and Mitch brought it over. The four of them spent an enjoyable time eating and talking, catching up on Mitch and Emily's lives, and explaining about Luke's _after_ -life. Julie was even persuaded to share a few small stories about her mom. Time seemed to fly by, and they were lingering over a second mug of hot apple cider, when Julie's phone buzzed.

"Oh, my dad is wondering where we are. Wow, it is quite late."

"We better go then, Jules. Mom, Dad, I'm so glad we got to talk, this has been absolutely amazing. I promise we'll let you know about our next performance."

"You're not going to stay here Luke?" Emily said with obvious disappointment.

"No mom, I'll come visit soon, though, I swear."

"Then we will be happy to see you then. Love you bud." Mitch cut off any objections from Emily and gave Luke a quick hug, before also tugging Julie into one, while Luke nodded and embraced Emily quickly before stating clearly, "I love you both." Then he caught Julie's hands and pulled her out the door and out of eyesight, popping them home.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


	18. Part Dix-huit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Short little moments with everyone on a rainy Sunday.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just some short fluff.

\--------------------------------------------------------

Sunday morning dawned dark and cloudy, soft rain falling that was inevitably on the way to a big storm.

Julie woke up slowly, hugging her blankets tighter around her. She had been dreaming about Luke again. The dreams were more frequent, and detailed, now that they were together. Mostly they were just the two of them singing, or cuddling during a family movie night, but last night was a little different. They were writing a song, but it was like she couldn't quite hear it, and she _REALLY wanted to hear it_. 

A soft knock on her door forced her to admit she wasn't going to fall back asleep, so she sat up and called "Come in!"

The door opened and, surprisingly, it was Luke, no phasing through the door today.

"I brought you some breakfast, it's already 10 am and your dad said you might want to be lazy today because of the storm." He looked amused.

"He told you how I feel about storms, then?"

"Well, he said there was a story. He's watching movies with Carlos and Reggie again, and Alex and Willie are hanging out together in the studio. He said it was okay if we watched something up here, or wrote some music if we wanted."

Julie smiled softly, 'Guess her dad decided he was okay with the guys in room after all. It was nice to know how much he trusted her, and them, even Luke.'

Luke set the plate and glass of milk down on her bedside table, and she registered for the first time that it was a large, gooey, frosted cinnamon roll.

"Where did that come from?! My dad _cannot_ bake."

"Oh, um, I asked Reggie and he helped me make them for everyone. He had to learn to cook for himself and he actually really liked it and got pretty good, so...." He bit his lip and ducked his head shyly.

"It looks and smells incredible! Now, grab my laptop and come here, we can find a movie, and then we can start brainstorming song ideas later."

His face lit up and he bounced a little, turning to her desk for the laptop, before coming over to sit down and snuggle next to her on her bed. 'This was going to be the best day!'

\-----------------------------------------

Out in the studio, Alex and Willie had borrowed Carlos' tablet and were listening to music. Willie was determined to broaden Alex's music understanding and also, ease him into the more accepting world that he had landed in. Willie wanted to be close to Alex, but he could see that there was still a bit of discomfort with any open, and _especially_ public shows of affection. It had gotten better after Ray had obviously assured him he didn't care, and it didn't change his affection for Alex at all, but Willie didn't want to push Alex into anything he wasn't ready for. 

"Check out this song Hotdog." He started a lyric video on YouTube of 'Born This Way', might as well start with a big one.

\-------------------------------------------------------

Meanwhile, Ray, Carlos, and Reggie were deciding on a movie to watch. Carlos was begging for 'Men in Black', but Ray was convinced Reggie might like to do a few different ones, rather than another series. Reggie had quickly become a very welcome edition to his days the last week, now that he could see him and everything. It was a lot less boring during the day when Carlos and Julie were at school and he didn't have a photo shoot.

"I don't mind either way, I swear! I just like hanging out with you guys, whatever you pick will be great!"

"See Dad! We should do MIB, it's important pop culture and he's fine with it!"

"But, there are other movies he might like!"

"Daaad, you're just mad because we just watched these not that long ago, but Reggie's never seen them!"

"Wha.. I... that's not... Fine." Ray threw his hands up in surrender, he really didn't have any other specific movie ideas. 

"Yessss! I win!" Carlos hopped around in a silly victory dance, causing Reggie and Ray to laugh as they sat down, ready to get the movie started.

  
\----------------------------------------------------

Julie and Luke had never gotten around to choosing a movie. With her first bite of cinnamon roll, Julie was ready to write a song about it, it was so good, and Luke couldn't stop staring at the drop of frosting that was clinging to her lip. 

Needless to say, he _definitely_ leaned in and kissed it away.

There were zero objections from Julie, and the kiss flipped a switch in her head, now she could suddenly hear the song from her dream. "Luke, grab your song journal and a pen, I have an idea!"

He was gazing at her dreamily, so her words took a moment to sink in, but then he quickly jumped to do as she asked, popping to the studio loft and back in less than a second.

"Lay it on me, Jules!" He had the pen ready to go and was looking at her expectantly.

'We kinda did that already, but I wouldn't mind a repeat....' Julie's eyes were on _his_ lips this time, and she couldn't think of any reason why not, so she went ahead and kissed him again, short and soft.

Luke's expression was hazy and adoring again when she pulled back, but he refocused as she spoke.

"I just dreamed about a song and I think I can remember part of it, it goes like this...."

\-----------------------------


	19. Part Dix-neuf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Slightly different format then usual at the beginning, Luke and Julie write the song from the last chapter. Italics are lyrics.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really didn't think this was going to happen tonight. It took me three hours to decide on this song- over 6,300 songs in my library and I had to go look this version up before it felt right, so this is definitely the Alex G and Adam Stanton version. Also, why TF do I have so much Christmas music?! I have a problem. 

Part Dix-neuf

\-------------------------------------

  
* _I've never opened up to anyone_  
 _So hard to hold back when I'm holding you in my arms_  
 _No, we don't need to rush this_  
 _Let's just take it slow..._ *

"That's really good Julie, anything else?"

"I think this could work as some of the chorus?"

* _No, I don't wanna mess this thing up_  
 _No, I don't wanna push too far..._ *

"Right, but what if we add something in between... like..."

* _Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight_  
 _Just a touch of the fire burning so bright..._ *

"THEN go into the..."

* _No, I don't wanna mess this thing up_  
 _No, I don't wanna push too far..._ *

"Okay Luke, and what about this in the beginning?"

* _I know that if we give this a little time_  
 _It'll only bring us closer to the love we wanna find_  
 _It's never felt so real, no, it's never felt so right..._ *

"Ehh, I feel like that should go later, what about starting with something like..."

* _Lyin' here with you so close to me_  
 _It's hard to fight these feelings when it feels so hard to breathe_  
 _I'm caught up in this moment_  
 _I'm caught up in your smile..._ *

"And then adding something like this after * _...push too far..._ *"

* _Just a shot in the dark that you just might_  
 _Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life_  
 _So baby I'm alright, with just a kiss goodnight..._ *

"Uh, Luke, you kinda aren't alive."

"Ouch, Jules. Besides, it means more, because I really _did_ wait my entire life. I had to _die_ to find you."

"... _oh..._ "

"Um, was that too sappy? I'm sorr-" Luke couldn't finish, his lips were suddenly otherwise occupied.

\-------------------

It took quite a few minutes for them to get back to the song.

\-------------------

"I think I've got the bridge, Luke."

* _No, I don't wanna say goodnight_  
 _I know it's time to leave, but you'll be in my dreams_

_Tonight_  
 _Tonight_  
 _Tonight..._ *

"Yes, that's perfect Jules! And just a repeat of the chorus before and then after with a fade out."

"The last chorus should be a little different at the end.. Ooooh...try this, Luke!"

* _So baby I'm alright, oh, let's do this right, with just a kiss goodnight_  
 _With a kiss goodnight_  
 _Kiss goodnight..._ *

"This is _amazing_ , Jules. You just dreamed about that?"

"Sort of." She ducked her head and blushed, "I dreamed of _us_ singing it."

"Well, maybe we should put it all together then?" He grinned at her, adjusting his guitar on his lap.

  
_Lyin' here with you so close to me_  
 _It's hard to fight these feelings when it feels so hard to breathe_  
 _I'm caught up in this moment_  
 _I'm caught up in your smile_

_I've never opened up to anyone_   
_So hard to hold back when I'm holding you in my arms_   
_No, we don't need to rush this_   
_Let's just take it slow_

_Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight_   
_Just a touch of the fire burning so bright_   
_No, I don't wanna mess this thing up_   
_No, I don't wanna push too far_   
_Just a shot in the dark that you just might_   
_Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life_   
_So baby I'm alright, with just a kiss goodnight_

_I know that if we give this a little time_   
_It'll only bring us closer to the love we wanna find_   
_It's never felt so real, no, it's never felt so right_

_Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight_   
_Just a touch of the fire burning so bright_   
_No, I don't wanna mess this thing up_   
_No, I don't wanna push too far_   
_Just a shot in the dark that you just might_   
_Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life_   
_So baby I'm alright, with just a kiss goodnight_

_No, I don't wanna say goodnight_   
_I know it's time to leave, but you'll be in my dreams_

_Tonight_   
_Tonight_   
_Tonight_

_Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight_   
_Just a touch of the fire burning so bright_   
_No, I don't wanna mess this thing up_   
_No, I don't wanna push too far_   
_Just a shot in the dark that you just might_   
_Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life_   
_So baby I'm alright, oh, let's do this right, with just a kiss goodnight_   
_With a kiss goodnight_   
_Kiss goodnight_

"We're totally adding that to our setlist."

Julie beamed at him, "Do you want to watch a movie now? We could put something on quiet and maybe take a nap?" Her eyes turned hopeful with the second question.

"How about just a quiet playlist for the nap, and you can tell me about why you love storms as we fall asleep?"

"Okay, that sounds perfect."

Luke set his guitar and journal out of the way and grabbed her laptop from the chair it had been banished to while they were writing. "So what should we listen to...."

He froze. He had managed to close the browser window that had been open with the Netflix home page, and was now staring at her screen background. It was a picture of the two of them curled up asleep on _HIS_ couch in the studio. It must have been from last week, when they were talking about his songs, and her mom. 

"Jules... how, this picture...?"

Her eyes went wide, and then she giggled a little, "I guess I _did_ forget to tell you about that, huh? That was the favor I hugged Reggie and Alex for, I had no idea they had done it, I just found the pictures on my phone later that night."

"This... I.... Can I have a copy?" He tore his gaze from the photo on the screen, and seemed to register what she had said, "Wait, _pictures_ , plural? There are more?"

"There are a few more. Put that back on the chair and come here, we can use my phone for music, and it has all the pictures."

Luke scrambled to obey, he really wanted to see the other photos of them.

As he situated himself on the bed next to her, an arm around her shoulders, he noticed that her phone background was the same as her laptop. How had he missed that? 

She pulled up her camera roll, starting with the shots of them napping. 

"I want copies of _all_ of these."

"What about this one?" Julie had finally come to the one of him just waking up and looking down at her.

".....I was stupid obvious, wasn't I?"

"Not to me. This certainly helped me decide to ask for your help with 'Perfect Harmony'. I was too worried it was just me before." 

"It was _never_ just you. I really thought it was just _me_." He pulled her close with the arm he had over her shoulder, and leaned his forehead against hers, "Tell me about why you love storms?"

Right then a deep rumble of thunder rolled through and the rain let loose, a torrential downpour that blanketed the room with a muffled atmosphere of isolation.

Julie closed her eyes and murmured in a contented whisper, "This feeling. Like the whole world has gone distant."

Luke sighed, his eyes also slipping closed, just breathing with her, as the storm reverberated around them.

This is what he wanted _forever_.

\----------------------------------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I finally kinda got back in the groove by the end there. I've been a little stuck, because I have a bunch of things I want to happen in this fic to actually move the plot along (Ray and Bobby getting the guys papers, a possible explanation of Flynn and Julie's fight with Carrie, an ACTUAL chapter focused on Alex and Willie, etc.) but I think I need to try to write a bunch of those scenes out before I post again, that way I can move them around and re-order them so they make sense. So it might be a few days before the next update, just FYI.


	20. Part Vingt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ray's and Bobby's plan is set, and ready to be put into motion.

Part Vingt

\-----------------------

It was Wednesday of the new week, and Julie and Carlos were at school.The guys were all sleeping in today out in the studio (Luke had come in to say good morning to Julie, but then gone back to bed, his now-usual routine.)Ray was cleaning up in the kitchen, Reggie had made an incredible lasagna for dinner last night, and they had all been full and happy, so he told everyone to just leave the dishes for the morning.It still amazed Ray how naturally the three ghost boys fit into their family, well, four, with Willie.He was still a little shy, something that didn’t seem to be his normal personality, but it made some sense, the other three were already so close, he was just slowly figuring where he fit in.Ray also got the impression Willie had been on his own as a ghost for awhile, aside from time spent at the Ghost Club, which in his book did not count.

As he was finishing the last of the plates and drying them, his phone rang.He turned to see it right there on the counter, smiling because he knew Reggie took his self-appointed job of keeping track of his phone seriously. He probably had put it there last night, after Ray had absentmindedly set it down somewhere random.He picked it up and quickly swiped to answer, he had been waiting for this call.

“Trevor.” They had agreed that he should keep using his middle name, it would be a little odd for him to suddenly have Ray calling him Bobby with no explanation, and what they were doing was not something they wanted to have to explain.

“Hey.”

“Hi.Any news?”

“My friend has come through with the ‘tickets’.”

“All four of them?”

“Yup, I threw in a little bonus for the expedited service.”

“Canada?”

“Yes.I’ve scheduled a private plane for Friday for you and me.We should be all set to bring them home this weekend.”

Ray sighed in slight relief.The hardest part wasn’t over yet, but they were roughly halfway there. “This means a lot.”

“I’m not sure I’ll ever think it’s enough.”

“They will.And you know they’ve already forgiven you.”

“Doesn’t mean I’ve forgiven myself.”

“Well, unfortunately you have to get there yourself.But we’re all here for you now.You can talk to any of us about it if you need to.”

“Thanks. I’ll send the flight info, you’re set to go with me?”

“Yeah, then I can call Julie here, and tell her exactly where we are, you know?”

“Perfect.”

“I’ll look for your email.Bye, Trevor.”

“Talk to you soon Ray.”

——————————————————————————————————————————

The next two days passed both excruciatingly slowly and fast as a blink for Ray.He was just ready for the trip to be over with, it would either work, or he and Bobby would be in jail, so it did make him a bit anxious.At least they had everything laid out and everyone knew their parts of the plan.

—————Flashback———————————

It was Monday night, Ray had spoken to Trevor after he had found someone, and he just needed the details for the boy’s paperwork, “Okay, we have to decide on names for you guys.”

“Wait, why can’t we keep our names?”Luke was visibly upset by this idea.

“Well, I was going to say, you should probably keep yours, your parents already know and everything.But Alex and Reggie, we might want to switch up your last names.It would be a little hard to explain if someone Googled you three and the article about your deaths kept showing up, with the picture that is obviously of you.Are you okay with that?Willie, it’s up to you what you would like to do.”

The discussion lasted awhile, Reggie kept throwing out Star Wars name options, but no on agreed with him.

Finally, things were decided and they were ready.

—————————Present—————————————————————————

Friday dawned bright and sunny.Ray forwent a big breakfast since he had to meet Bobby at the airport.Everyone had been up to see him and wish him a good flight, before the guys went back to get some more sleep. They would be popping to Ray and Booby’s hotel room later that night, and Saturday they were all planning to get on a regular plane at the Canadian airport and enter the US ‘legally’, or at least as close as they could come.

“I’ll call you once we’re settled, Julie.Then you can send the boys to me, okay?We’ll all be back here tomorrow night.”

“All right, Papi.I love you, good luck!”She hugged him goodbye, she still had to go to school, not that she was going to be able to focus today, at all.

Carlos followed his dad out to the car, he was getting dropped off at his school on the way.Julie sighed and turned to grab her bag and go meet Flynn, but paused at the sight of Luke leaning up against the counter watching her.

“Luke.”

“What’s up Jules?”

“Do you think this is going to go well?”

He smiled the softest version of the grin she had deemed _hers_ yet, “Julie, no matter what happens, I will _ALWAYS_ come back to you.“

She didn’t have much of a response to that, but she knew she wouldn’t have peace until all of this was over and he was back with her. “I’m just anxious for this to be done.”

He straightened up and walked over to her, reaching out to brush her cheek with the tips of his fingers, and then pulling her into his chest in a tight hug. “I _promise_ things will work out.I have a really good feeling about this.”

Julie lifted her head and pushed up on her tip-toes to press a kiss on his lips.They lost themselves in their own world for a few minutes, only pulling back when there was a knock on the front door and the sound of Flynn calling for Julie to, “Get your butt out here we have to get to school!”

She giggled at her friend’s words and stepped out of Luke’s embrace, “I’ll see you as soon as my last class is over.”

“I’ll see you then Jules.”

Picking up her bag from the couch, she started to the door, but stopped and spun around back to him to peck his lips one more time. “Have a good day.”

And then, as she actually made her way to the door, under her breath she whispered, too soft for him to catch it, _“I love you.”_ He had basically said it in his song, but that wasn’t quite the _same_.She had thought about when would be best to say the words to him, and it wasn’t now, especially because they had a fairly risky plan they were trying to execute this weekend.She was pretty sure they would come bursting out as soon as he got home, though, and she wasn’t going to fight them then.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys the not-exactly-legal 'plan' to give the boys paperwork and new lives as it unfolds!


	21. Part Vingt et Un

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The plan is in motion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a double update, so go back and read Chapter 20 first, if you haven't!

Part Vingt et Un

\----------------------------------

  
She got home from school that afternoon with Flynn, they had stopped at Flynn’s house to grab her a bag of stuff, of course she was sleeping over with Julie and Carlos that night. Making their way inside, they found Willie and Carlos watching some cooking challenge show, with Alex occasionally asking them questions. Reggie and Luke were in the kitchen.

“Uh, what are you two up to?” Flynn had heard about Reggie cooking, but had yet to see it, or taste it herself. 

“We’re making dinner.” Luke was beaming proudly. “It’s Chicken Cordon Bleu, with Asparagus in Lemon Butter Sauce, and Whipped Cheesy Mashed Potatoes.”

“Whoa.” Flynn turned to Julie, “I feel like I keep saying this, but I was so wrong. Who cares if they’re ghosts?! They can _cook_!”

Julies dissolved in giggles, she had been looking forward to Flynn’s reaction, and the boys deciding on something pretty fancy for tonight was perfect. Flynn was a bit of a foodie, so there had been no doubt she would love this. “Not crazy for making them part of my family anymore, am I?”

“No, not at all…. is that, did you guys make the Lemon Butter Sauce from _scratch_?!”

Reggie laughed, “Well, of course! I’m so glad Ray has a lemon zester!”

He and Flynn fell into a detailed conversation about cooking, and Luke washed his hands quickly and moved over to stand by Julie. “How was your day? I missed you.”

“I missed you too, I also realized that once you go to meet my dad tonight, I won’t see you guys for a whole 24 hours or something. That’s longer than any time since you showed up in the studio. It’s so strange to think about.”

Luke slid his arm around her shoulders, “Yeah, but when we get back we’ll exist again on paper, and we can start really working on making all of our dreams come true.”

“Like a recording deal?”

“Sure, and eventually, someday, maybe other things we couldn’t even imagine hoping for before.” His eyes met hers, and there was _something_ there in his gaze that she couldn’t quite identify, but it was warm, and soft, and intense in a way that made her heart pound in the _best_ way.

  
———————————————————————————————

They all had dinner together, sincere compliments being given about the food, and plenty of laughing and joking. It was always fun having Flynn around with her sassy sarcasm and wit to play against the guys.

All too soon, though, Julie’s phone rang. Silence fell over the room and she answered it, grateful for Luke slipping his hand into her free one and tangling their fingers, before squeezing reassuringly.

“Papi? …. Yes….. Reggie and Luke cooked, Chicken Cordon Bleu. …… Of course it was _delicious_! …….. We got her stuff, she’s here and staying over. …………. The Marriott? ……………….. Okay. When’s the flight back tomorrow? …………………….. Wait, what? But… …………………….. I see. I’ll ask her, but I’m sure she will. ………….. I love you too. I’ll tell them. Okay, bye Dad.”

Six faces stared at her in anticipation and inquiry. “He said they’re at The Marriott in Vancouver by the airport. He also said the flight back will actually be Sunday morning, so he asked if you could stay another night here Flynn.”

“Of course! You don’t even need to ask!”

“Are you okay Jules?” Luke quietly asked in her ear, both still sitting at the table. Everyone else had stood to clean up, they knew Ray and Bobby would be expecting them.

She lay her head on his shoulder and tilted it up to look into his eyes, “You’re going to be gone another night. I’m going to miss you so much.”

He kissed her forehead and then smiled at her, “You are going to have a crazy fun time with Flynn, you probably won’t even think about us tomorrow. Go have a ‘Bestie Day’ or something. It’s going to be fine.”

“I _always_ think about you.”

A glimpse of that _something_ from earlier flashed through his eyes again, and her heart sped up in response, but then it was gone, and he just pecked her softly on the cheek and stood up, tugging her with him. “Let’s help clean up, and then we guys better go.”

———————————————————————————

It only took about twenty minutes to get everything done with all of them working together, and now it was time. They all shared tight hugs and whispers of good luck, and then… 

“We’ll be back soon, see you!” Alex and Willie popped away, holding hands, and Reggie waved as he disappeared right after them. 

Flynn cleared her throat, “Good luck with everything, Luke. Now, Carlos, why don’t you show me your new Playstation game?” She carefully herded him up towards his room, giving Julie a meaningful look from behind Luke as they walked away.

His hand went up to scratch his neck, the familiar action causing Julie to smile, even as she fought back tears of worry over this trip. “I have a good feeling about this, but I wish I didn’t have to leave you here, Jules. I want you to know, though, that no matter what I _will_ be back on Sunday. Nothing could stop me from coming back to you.”

“I know. Thank you Luke.”

He opened his arms and she stepped into them, they held each other close for a long, long, moment. Reluctantly they let go and he cupped her cheek, wiping a tear with his thumb, and leaned down to kiss her, pouring his feelings into it, hoping she understood. Then he stepped back and with a flash of _her_ smile, he was gone.

———————————————————————————————————

The boys reappeared in the hotel suite without a hitch, and Ray was waiting to fill them in on an extra part of the plan that hadn’t been shared until now. 

“So, I know it might seem odd that we changed the flight home, but Bobby and I realized that we need luggage for you, and also that you might need more clothes anyway. If you’re going to embrace living again, you might want to update your styles some.”

“Shouldn’t Julie and Flynn be part of that? Wouldn’t they be good at telling us what’s in style now?” Alex was a bit puzzled by Ray’s reasoning.

“I’m sure they do know more about current styles. However, I think the ‘90s flannels and stuff have actually come back a little, anyway, or did a few years ago? I don’t know. I just think you guys should each find _your_ new style, _you_ need to be comfortable in it. Bobby is picking up food now, but he was at the bank earlier this week and he set up accounts for each of you. _BEFORE_ you get upset, he’s doing it because he believes you deserve some of the money from the songs you didn’t get credit on, and you _will not_ change his mind, he was adamant about doing this. So, tomorrow we are going to hit the mall and get you everything you need, that way the luggage we have for you will be full of clothes and everything will look normal.”

“I wasn’t part of the band, there’s no way he should be giving me anything, not after you already got me paperwork.” Willie was a bit overwhelmed.

“He isn’t worried about a little detail like that Willie. Just go with it.” Ray put his hand out, grasping Willie’s shoulder and giving it a gentle squeeze of reassurance and support. “We’re all family now, even if we aren’t related, okay?”

“O-okay.” Alex pulled him into a side hug, letting him know he was there. Willie _had_ been alone as a ghost for awhile, and the close, caring atmosphere of these people, this _family_ , _his_ family? It was sometimes hard to fathom, that it actually was real, but he loved it.

  
——————————————————————————

Julie had gone up to find Flynn and Carlos after Luke left. They spent some time playing games on the Playstation, but neither Julie nor Carlos had slept well the night before, too keyed up about things. They were both yawning early, and Flynn went ahead and took charge. “Go brush your teeth and get ready for bed Carlos, you too Julie. We’ll grab some blankets and pillows and set up for a movie in the living room, that way you can just fall asleep when you need to, and we can all be together.”

“That sounds cool!” Carlos jumped up to do as she suggested, glad they were willing to include him.

The girls also went to get ready, heading to Julie’s bedroom to change into pajamas and start grabbing the pillows and blankets.

“Flynn, _thank you_. I know things have been busy and we haven’t had much time to hang out just me and you, but Tia Victoria is coming to pick up Carlos in the morning, he has baseball practice. Luke suggested we do a ‘Bestie Day’ and I think that sounds perfect. We can go get pedicures and go to the mall, maybe see a movie, you in?”

“Duh. And I’m glad Luke gets us. Can’t be upset with your boyfriend when he clearly just wants you to be happy. The part where this makes _me_ happy too is a good bonus.” Flynn had been busy that week with some homework, so she didn’t specifically miss Julie just yet, since she had been spending more time with Luke and the guys. But, it was nice to know that she wouldn’t be pushed aside, and especially that Luke was actively aware and had thought about her feelings. She may have been against him before, what with the _ghost_ thing, but he and the others were basically alive again, so she was willing to let that go now.

“I love him.” Julie said it softly, but it wasn’t a question in any way, it was just the truth.

“He quite obviously loves you too. I’m happy for you, bestie.” Flynn squeezed Julie in a quick hug, and then they continued getting ready for bed and gathering stuff for their movie night.


	22. Part Vingt-deux

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shopping, some Willie/Alex, and a longish conversation between Ray and Luke. Also, they arrive home again.

Part Vingt-deux

\--------------------------------------------

  
Saturday was somewhat eventful for everyone. Julie and Flynn went and had a blast just hanging out together at the mall, shopping and relaxing, each getting a Mani-Pedi. They wrapped up in the afternoon with ice cream, before heading home to be there when Tia Victoria dropped Carlos back off. They planned to have another movie night in the living room and order pizza for dinner.

In Canada, the boys were also at a mall. Things had definitely changed in 25 years, but they had a really good time. Reggie asked Ray to help him pick a few things out, and Bobby encouraged Luke to try some new stuff. He still wanted band shirts and flannels, and Bobby really couldn’t see him _not_ wearing them, but he helped Luke pick out more plain t-shirts and solid-color button-downs, and a few other clothes. Alex and Willie had gone off together, Willie may have been on his own, but he had been people-watching for quite a few years as a ghost, he knew what they should get. It also helped that he was good at listening to Alex, and allowing him to open up and relax.

Ray had made a plan when they got there that morning to meet at the main entrance of the mall at 5pm, then they would go somewhere for dinner. Willie had immediately latched onto Alex and dragged him off, he wanted to spend the day together and, based on the knowing smiles from everyone else, they understood. Even Luke had called out after them, “Enjoy the day, you two!”

“Are you having fun, Hotdog?” Willie grinned at him, he swung their clasped hands as they walked towards the food court for a snack. 

“Ye-yeah, it’s been crazy and a little overwhelming. This is all so different. But, uh, you’ve been really great about making me feel comfortable, so thank you.” Alex was blushing, but he had a smile that wouldn’t be contained on his face.

“Good. I want you to be comfortable with me Alex, even if I do like teasing you sometimes.” Willie had stopped, and they stood next to a pillar, off the main walkway.

“I…” Alex looked away for a moment, taking a deep breath. “You make me comfortable, but also flustered, and I always have butterflies when you smile at me. You hold my hand like it’s natural, and you have a nickname for me that makes me crazy, but you always say it like it’s special, so I can’t help but love it. You make me feel like I’m exactly who I should be and I don’t need to be scared to show it. I _really_ like you Willie.” He looked back into Willie’s eyes and seemed to gain confidence from the slight blush that was now on Willie’s cheeks, and the affection and acceptance shining from his eyes. He tilted his head down slowly, his eyes sliding shut. Willie didn’t hesitate, he put a hand up, gently placing it where Alex’s shoulder and neck met, and leaned up to bring their lips together. They shared a soft kiss for a long moment, before pulling back to breathe and beam at each other. This is what Willie had been waiting and hoping for, he had been pretty sure Alex felt the same way, but he was a little scared to really do anything first. Having Alex say those things and be the one to initiate the kiss made all of his worries disappear.

“So, you ready for a bite of food, Hotdog?”

“Yeah, let’s go!”

The rest of the day went quickly, and if they were a little more giddy and prone to duck behind a pillar now and then, as they traversed the mall, well, they were _happy_.

  
——————————————————————————————————

Luke had snuck away alone after lunch, there had been a loose group of he, Reggie, Ray and Bobby, but he had seen a store he _had_ to check out by himself. It was a jewelry store, and in the window he had seen a bracelet with a music note charm hanging off it, he _needed_ to see it up close.

Thirty minutes later, he strolled out of the store with a small gift bag, a pleased and smug look across his face. The store did personalizations, so he was now the owner of a gold bracelet with two small charms. A music note, and a heart- which was inscribed with “Perfect Harmony” on one side, and “J & L” on the other. He couldn’t wait to give it to Julie, he had been talking to Ray and it had been mentioned that her 17th birthday was coming up. Luke wanted it to be perfect for her, and he even had a few new song ideas for them starting to take form in his head.

\----------------------------------

The evening was quiet and calm, for both those still in California, and those in the hotel in Canada. Although, a slight string of underlying tension flowed through everyone. The airport and the flight home the next morning would be the test.

\-----------------------------------  
The boys and Ray and Bobby were up early on Sunday, finishing getting their suitcases packed with their new clothes, making sure all the tags were off, and double-checking their passports and driver's licenses. Ray had also gone over that with them the last week, taking each of them driving to make sure they remembered, they probably wouldn't need to drive much, but it was good to be prepared.

"Are we all set boys?" Ray had the cart with his and Bobby's luggage, ready to add theirs. "We have a taxi coming in the next 20 minutes, breakfast can wait until we're at the airport. Julie would _never_ forgive us if we miss our flight." 

"We're ready Ray." 

"Yeah, let's go."

All the boys nodded in agreement and loaded their stuff on the cart, before following Ray out to go meet Bobby in the hotel foyer to wait for the taxi. 

Luckily the drive there and checking their luggage went off without any issues. Then, they got to security. Luke was last, and what Ray had thought was a joke from Bobby early in the planning stages, he had actually done. The security guard looked at Luke's passport and then started happily questioning him in _French_. Ray was horrified. Except.....

_"Oui, je voyage pour le travail... Nous sommes un groupe de musique... Bonne journée, monsieur! Merci beaucoup!"_

"Uh, Luke?"

"Yes, Ray?" He was putting his shoes back on like nothing had happened.

"You-you can speak French?"

"Oh. Yeah. My dad's parents actually lived in Canada, we used to visit them a bunch when I was in elementary school, and I only spoke French with them. They both passed away by high school, but Bobby took a French class so he could flirt with some girl, and I sometimes helped him with his homework. So he knew I would be fine, don't worry."

"Oh... okay." Ray decided that he was _definitely_ glad he was sitting next to Luke on the plane, obviously there was a lot more to this kid than music, and now Ray was extremely interested in finding out about it.

\---------------------------------------

They all got a quick breakfast, with plenty of coffee for Ray, and tea for Bobby, and then they sat around at the gate for awhile before the plane started boarding.

It wasn't a super long flight, but Ray happily settled himself in the aisle seat next to Luke a few rows behind the other four. He hadn't _quite_ planned it this way, but it had worked out and he was pleased they could have an uninterrupted conversation.

"So, Luke, you are extremely talented at the guitar, you write amazing songs, _and_ you speak French fluently? What else don't I know about you? Since you have clearly become _ridiculously_ important to my baby girl, I think we should get to know each other better, right?"

"Uh. Well, sure." Luke was a little wary, it wasn't that he didn't want to talk to Ray, or that he was worried Ray wouldn't like him, they were past that. It was more that Luke wasn't very good about opening up, he used music to show himself, lyrics he could write and rewrite, but a regular conversation could be _hard_.

"I don't want you to think I'm interrogating you. How about we just start with how you managed to convince Julie to sing again? Did you say something to her that sparked things?"

Luke chuckled a little, " _Sparked?_ Actually that word is a recurring theme, it seems like. But really, I just told her about how _I_ felt about music, and I guess it helped? She did find me staring into the fridge that second night, and she walked through me, we weren't solid then. I told her how I thought her voice was like a wrecking ball." He paused and asked hesitantly, "Did Reggie mention that you walked through him that time, and that he could tell you had a good heart?"

"Yes, he did tell me about that. He also fell through me that night I learned you were ghosts, and that time gave me a strange understanding of you boys, it's how I _know_ I can trust you with Julie."

" _Oh_. Thank you." Luke looked down and fiddled with the strings on his brand new gray hoodie for a moment. 

Ray just waited patiently.

"When Julie walked through me that first time, it was like I knew that she would understand me. Alex and Reggie, and even Bobby...before, well, they're my family and they get me, but..... it felt like more, like she would truly share my connection with music." He suddenly jerked up to meet Ray's eyes with alarm, "The connection wasn't anything weird, though! Not like our souls got attached or anything like that! It was like I knew we would be _friends_!"

"It's okay, Luke, go on." Ray had to school his face to remain impassive, hiding the amused smile trying to break through at the obvious panic in Luke's voice.

There was a long pause, then, "I... it just crept up on me. _She_ crept up on me." His voice had dropped to a whisper. "I was denying it until the performance for the party in the driveway. We were singing 'Edge of Great' and she wouldn't look at me. It hurt. A lot. And I was suddenly going over every time we sang together, and how it felt to write with her... just be _around_ her..... _I love her_." The last part was still quiet, but it was spoken clear and firm.

Ray was internally cheering. He may not have been there to see all the milestones of the two of them finding each other, but he had seen plenty. And he _knew_ Julie felt the same as Luke. Maybe they were still young, but he had faith that they would either work out and stay together, or part on good terms, they cared enough to make that happen if needed.

"Then I think you need to talk to her when we get back." He cleared his throat, deciding not to push the subject further. "On another note, I've been talking to Bobby about somewhere for you boys to stay, you can't keep sleeping on air mattresses in the studio forever. The house across the street is about to be put on the market, and he thinks it would be a good investment, real estate usually is. Then you four guys could have your own space, but still be close by. I personally think you might want to sign up for a college class or two. Nothing that would interfere with the band, but Julie still has to at least finish high school, that's something I _won't_ budge on, so a class to occupy you during part of the day might be a good thing."

"A house?! That's the nicest thing... I mean, not including this... I just.... _t_ _hank you Ray_!" Luke wiped a hand over his eyes quickly, "Will you maybe help me look at classes? I didn't want to before, but if it doesn't interfere with the band..... And I know Reggie would love your input!"

"Of course. I'm kinda hoping Reggie might like to take a photography class, he's seemed interested in my work, and it would be nice to help him with homework and all that."

"He would _love_ that! His parents didn't take much of an interest in him at all, they were always just fighting."

"Ah. I was going to ask about that." Ray's forehead crinkled in thought, "I'm not quite sure how to ask this delicately, but, did things ever get, well, _physical_?"

Luke blew out a breath, "No. Not that I know of, and I'm pretty sure I would know. It was just verbal, and it could get bad if he tried to get in the middle."

"Okay. I kinda want to say 'good', but that's not quite right because it doesn't have to be physical to be damaging. Do you think he would talk to me eventually?"

"Maybe. I think so."

"Good, that is actually good."

They lapsed into silence for a few minutes, then, "What about Alex?" Ray's voice was soft.

"He- it wasn't good. He has anxiety attacks. You and Julie, and Flynn have been so nice... it seems better now? Like, it's kinda okay for him to be... himself? With Willie?"

"It's much better now. There's still a lot that could be improved, but as of right now, they could even get married if they wanted to."

" _REALLY_? That is much better than before!" 

"Which reminds me, I want to say how much you impressed me the other day when we had the table delivered. You stood up and included Willie, and made it clear he was part of the deal because of Alex. It showed great character and care for your friends."

Luke went bright red at that, ducking his head and mumbling, "Alex is one of the best people I know, and one of my best friends, how could I _not_?"

"Exactly. It was the right thing to do. You are someone to be proud of, Luke, don't ever let anyone tell you different." Ray was still a little upset with Luke's parents, he knew they had reconciled now, and it was a different time back then, but to him, you _always_ supported your kids, no matter what. He would never say a word, though, it wasn't his place. Also, Luke seemed to be firmly set as part of _his_ family now, so he was going to be there for him, regardless of anything or _anyone_ else.

"What's your read on Alex, would he also talk to me? Or does he seem to be opening up to Willie enough for right now?"

"I think he's okay for now. He told me what you said to him, that he could always be himself. I think if he needs to he might go to you, you let him know he could."

"That's great. I don't want to push any of you, but I want you to know that the option is there."

"Ray. I can say sincerely, you have made us feel more welcome and taken care of, and _safe_ than we have in _years_ ," Luke dropped to a barely there whisper, "and I'm not counting when we were dead and stuck in that dark room." His voice went back to mostly normal volume, cracking slightly, "I really can't say it enough, _thank you_."

Ray had to blink back a few tears of his own at that, and he reached over and tugged Luke into a long hug, it was so _easy_ to see how Julie got attached to these boys so fast, it had happened to him too.

  
\----------------------------------------------------

As the seatbelt light went on, warning that the plane was starting it's descent, Ray smiled at Luke, they had been chatting the whole flight. "Are you ready to get home?"

" _Yes_. I, uh, I'm really glad we got to talk, though." Luke's hand went up to rub the back of his neck, and Ray couldn't help but hug him again.

"Just remember you have to stay in the car until we get back, no _ghosting_ home. The neighbors need to see you get out and us unloading all the luggage, okay?"

"Okay, Ray."

\-----------------------------------------------

When they got off the plane and had retrieved their bags, they followed Bobby and Ray out towards the main doors of the airport. Bobby had arranged for Ray's car to be ready for them. He spoke to the driver quickly, and accepted several plastic bags, tipping the gentleman and waving goodbye before turning to the guys and handing them each a bag, glancing in each one as he spoke their names. "Reggie, here. Then Luke, Alex, and, yup, Willie." 

They looked inside to find brand new cell phones, each with a different color case. Red for Reggie to match his bass, blue for Luke for his guitar, a light orange for Willie, and a pastel pink for Alex. "Ray thought you might like that, since you seem to have a few shirts in that color." Bobby grinned, and they all threw their arms around him in a group hug,

"Thank you!" "This is amazing!" "You really didn't have to!" "Thanks, Bobby!" 

"You are _very_ welcome!"

Ray clapped his hands, "All right, guys! Let's all go home!"

\-----------------------------------------------

As the SUV pulled up in front of the Molina house and everyone got out, the front door flew open, and Julie was running down the steps. Luke beamed at her, but was a bit bewildered as she smiled back at him, but detoured around the front of the car, instead of coming to him. His look turned to one of fond understanding, though, as she gave her dad a fierce, lightning fast hug, and said, "I'm so glad you're back Papi!" before dashing back around and flinging herself into Luke's arms. Burying her face in his neck, she jumped up wrapping her legs around him, causing him to stagger back a step as he caught her and tucked his face into her hair, just breathing her name, " _Julie._ " 

"I _missed_ you."

"I missed _you_ , Jules."  


"You guys are _so_ dramatic. It's barely been 48 hours." Reggie muttered under his breath, exchanging amused looks with everyone else, as they all laughed and shook their heads affectionately.

\-------------------------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is all I have for a few days again, probably. And, I guess I just cannot get away from Protective!Ray/BestDadEver!Ray ? 
> 
> Also I did the thing. I hope my translations are correct, Luke is supposed to be saying, "Yes. I am traveling for work... We are a band... Have a good day, sir! Thank you very much!"


	23. Part Vingt-trois

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bobby and Carrie talk, and Julie tells Luke.

Part Vingt-trois

\---------------------------------

As everyone helped haul the luggage inside, they found Flynn, with Carlos next to her, working on an early dinner. She couldn't help but let out a whistle as she saw the guys, decked out in their new clothes and looking like a blend of '90s and modern. 

"Daanngg, boys! Lookin' good!"

"Thanks Flynn!" Reggie was already halfway to the kitchen to ask her what she was making and if he could help.

"Thanks." 

"Yeah, it's nice to have a little more variety."

"I'm still wearing a band shirt under this, obviously." Luke winked at her, "Did you have fun yesterday?"

"We did." She took a few steps over to him to quietly say, "Thanks, Luke. It was nice to have some time with Julie, and she said it was kinda your idea."

"You're incredibly important to her. I don't _ever_ want to mess that up." His sincerity was laced with _something_ more that had Flynn nodding smugly, she knew she was right about his feelings for Julie.

"Hey, I've actually got to get home, but I'll see you all soon. I have a meeting with the realtor tomorrow, so don't get too comfortable on your air mattresses, okay guys?" Bobby raised an eyebrow at them from the doorway, sharing a conspiratorial look with Ray and Luke, they hadn't told anyone else yet. Ray had ended up swearing Luke to secrecy after Bobby had stopped by their seats on the way back from the restroom part way through the flight home. Bobby wanted to make the announcement and this was his moment.

"Wait, what?!" Julie didn't look excited, instead she looked a little ill at the thought the guys wouldn't be right out in the studio.

Luke stepped up behind her and snaked his arms around her waist, leaning down to whisper in her ear, "Don't worry. Let him finish."

"Yes, that's right! I have found out the house across the street is about to go on the market, and I figured, the guys need their own rooms, huh?"

"Are you serious, Bobby?!" Alex grabbed him in a tight hug and Reggie abandoned the noodles he was stirring for Flynn to run over and join in.

Julie's eyes had gone wide and she spun around in Luke's embrace, " _REALLY?!_ You'll be right there?!"

_Her_ smile was on his face, and he just nodded as he brushed some hair behind her ear.

It was time. There was no way she could wait any longer. Julie pulled away from him, calling "You are _amazing_!" to Bobby, and yanked Luke by the arm towards the kitchen door, "We'll be back in a bit!"

Luke was confused, but he'd follow Julie anywhere, so he just shrugged at everyone and went with her.

Ray was barely containing his knowing grin. 

"What is _that_ about?" Carlos asked, having been quiet until now.

Flynn caught Ray's eye and, acknowledging each other's understanding, they grinned like fools and chorused, "Nothing!" 

Willie murmured in Alex's ear, causing him to smirk. 

Reggie just stared after them with a look of satisfaction, he had _so_ called it. _CHEMISTRY_.

Bobby rolled his eyes, those two were cute, but ridiculous. "I gotta go, I have to have a little talk with _my_ daughter." Reggie turned and they shared a meaningful look, they had talked about a lot of stuff on the plane. 

"I'll drive you home. I should be back in about half an hour, that fine for dinner Flynn?"

She gave Ray a thumbs up. "Especially if these guys all help."

"Of course." "We will!"

He smiled at them all, then headed out with Bobby.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------

"So, how is Carrie doing? I haven't seen her around much." Ray shot a quick glance at Bobby in the passenger seat.

"She's okay, I think, I haven't been around quite as much as I should have been lately. But I'm going to rectify that starting now." He had a determined look on his face.

"Oh. That's good."

They lapsed into comfortable silence for the rest of the drive, both tired from the long weekend, taking several energetic boys shopping, and two plane flights in less than two days.

\----------------------------------------------------------------

"Carrie, honey? Where are you?" Bobby walked into his house with a specific goal, talk to his daughter about what was going on with her. He had realized on the plane, as he chatted with Reggie more in detail about the boys' adventures as ghosts, and forming the band with Julie, that he had probably spent a _bit_ more quality time with his therapist, rather than his daughter, for the last several months. 

Rose had been his friend, the only one who really knew about the guys and their death. So, when she had passed away, he had started to spiral. He felt like the last person left who would remember the guys, as the crazy, fun, ridiculous, _amazing_ people that they were, so his guilt had begun to crush him once more. They had deserved credit for those songs, and it was _his_ fault they didn't have it. So, he had checked out of his life a little, and he hadn't even really noticed that Carrie wasn't hanging out with Julie and Flynn much, or at all anymore. He felt bad he hadn't been better at being there and _talking_ to Carrie.

"Dad?"

"Baby! How are you?"

"Please don't pretend you care about me right now. I _know_ you've been helping Julie and her band. I thought you would be on _my_ side?! I know you said I had to make it on my own, but it's not _fair_!" Carrie had walked into the living room to meet him with her arms crossed and tears in her eyes. "I told you, I was okay with your lawyers looking over any contract Dirty Candi might get, I _said_ I understood you didn't want to use your connections to give us special treatment! But why is _she_ an exception?! She stopped confiding in me, and only talked to Flynn, and now she has some _random_ band with a hologram gimmick that keeps upstaging me! I've _worked_ for this! I understand that her mom passed away, but mine _left_ and no one cared! Why does _she_ get to check out of music for a _year_ and then have everyone fall all over themselves to help her after that?! Nick _broke up with me_ because he thought I was being mean to her! Why is _everything_ about her?!"

Bobby was floored. There was _so much_ he had missed while he was occupied by his own stuff. Sure, Carrie was a teenager, and it was hard to connect with her sometimes, she had been pushing him away since thirteen, but this was _important_.

"Carrie. Nothing could change how much I love you. And, honestly, it's not about Julie. Can we sit down and really talk? I always thought that I was protecting you, not telling you about how I _really_ became famous, but I think I was wrong. You deserve to know. You see I had these friends...."

He didn't tell her about the ghost aspect, or a lot of the details, such as the songs not really being his, but hopefully the stuff about how the producer controlled his life was enough. 

"Okay, so, Julie's band reminds you of your dead friends and that's why you decided to help them?" Carrie was skeptical, who flew to another country (even if it was just up to Canada) for some _strangers_?!

"It's complicated, baby." Bobby paused, gathering his thoughts. "It's like I said, managers and producers can take advantage, and I think it's a new thing, a _good_ thing for me to start looking out for younger people coming into the industry so that they're _safe_. I'm sorry I haven't been there for you in the same way, I thought I was doing the right thing in giving you more freedom, but I never want you to think I don't love you.

Carrie sighed. "I know you love me Daddy, and I know I haven't been the most gracious to Julie. I don't know why I got so mad at her, there was just so much going on. Her mom was always so nice to me, I think it hurt to lose her myself, but also I didn't think I _should_ feel that way.

Carrie had _wanted_ to be there for Julie, but she had been shut out, Julie had shut out _everyone_ but Flynn, and that was only because Flynn would _not_ take 'no' for an answer. Carrie already had experience in being shut out, her Mom had done it for _years_ , so she just... didn't try very hard when Julie stopped talking to her. 

She wasn't sure exactly when she, Julie, and Flynn, had started to lose their closeness, it wasn't sudden, instead it had somewhat crept up on them, and it hurt, Carrie felt left out more and more. She's basically positive they didn't mean to, they didn't even seem to notice, but their trio was mostly a duo by the time Julie's mom got sick, and Carrie was the odd one out. Lashing out at Julie and Flynn just _happened_ after that. But Carrie had her dance team friends, and they had formed Dirty Candi, she wanted to make it big and make her dad proud. 

"Carrie, I think we should talk about your mom. Not tonight, but soon, okay?" He reached out and pulled her into a hug.

"O-okay Dad. I suppose." 

\------------------------------------------------------------------  
Meanwhile, back at the Molina's......

Julie had dragged Luke all the way to the studio before stopping and turning, her arms going around his waist in a loose hug.

"Julie, what is it?" He set his hands on her shoulders, searching her face.

"I've been wanting to say it, but then there was this weekend, with the trip, and things were kinda crazy, and I, I just..." She squeezed her eyes shut and sighed in frustration. "I'm sorry, but I ramble when I'm nervous, and I don't know why I'm nervous, because it's _you_ , but I am, and please stop me already, I....."

" _Jules_." Luke cupped her face, brushing his thumbs over her cheeks gently, and tilted her head up, locking their eyes. "You can tell me _anything_."

"I- I love you."

He froze, and just blinked at her a few times, his eyes losing focus.

A panicked look fell over her face and she tried to pull away from him, 'I'm so stupid, he doesn't feel the same way! I've _ruined_ everything!' 

Luke wouldn't let her go, though. As soon as she had tensed and tried to pull back he had tightened his grip on her shoulders, 'I thought I would be the first to say it, just blurt it out at some random time, and have to tell her it was okay if she didn't feel the same. But, she just...she said she _loves me_.' 

It had only been a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity to Julie, until he shook his head a tiny bit and his eyes refocused on hers.

"Jules, I am _crazy_ about you. _Je t'aime_." His right hand slid up around the back of her neck, and his left went down as he wrapped his arm around her back. Lowering his lips to hers, he kissed her, slow and deep. She had relaxed a little when he spoke the first sentence, and now her arms involuntarily went up to curl around his neck, sinking into the kiss. 

Too soon for him, she broke away to breathe and ask him something she considered very important, "Wait, was that _French_?!"

He laughed, and just kissed her again, _that_ could wait. 

\----------------------------------------------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know about the thing with Carrie, it was fighting me the whole way, but I wanted to get a chapter up, and I didn't think staring at it any longer would make it better. I just figured that there didn't really have to be a big dramatic fight for them to stop talking? I also figure Carrie puts a lot of pressure on herself, and has some issues related to her mom leaving, the show never mentions her, but if she died I feel like something would have been said, so I think she left, or there was a divorce or something like that. 
> 
> Hope the ending was nice and fluffy for you! I have an earlier draft that was so SAPPY, I HAD to re-do it.


	24. Part Vingt-quatre

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I guess my brain decided on a deep dive into Luke's thoughts about a few things? And, he writes a new song.

Part Vingt-quatre

\-------------------------------------------

The boys had been 'alive' again for about a week, and Ray had talked to Luke about having his parents over for dinner the next evening, Saturday. Luke hadn't seen them since the dinner with Julie when they had told his dad he was, for lack of a better phrase, 'back from the dead'. He had spoken to them on the phone a handful of times, but things were a bit strained. His dad was pretty okay with everything, however his mother was having trouble with the idea of him not coming home, staying in his old bedroom, and just starting back from where things had been before he left. He couldn't do that, though, and while he was incredibly grateful to have a second chance, he knew he was _so_ different than the boy she remembered. 

'Dying made me grow up a little, but being around Julie and her family has made me grow up a lot. Not specifically because of her, or for her, but because _I want_ to be better. I really screwed up with the Caleb thing and letting her down, and facing the idea of being wiped from existence, well, that was a big deal. I don't want to fight with my mom again, but I _will not_ go back to that house. We would just fall into the same old pattern and start fighting again, there are little things she's said that tell me she _still_ doesn't understand. I'm happy here, and as much as I do want to spend some time with my parents, dinner now and then feels like the best way to mend things and still be _myself_. I think now my dad will back me up, which is really nice.' Luke was pacing around the studio, trying to sort through if he wanted to tell his parents about the class he had picked out with Ray for the Spring semester at the community college. His mom would be over the moon, but she would make such a big deal about it only being _one_ class. They had argued in circles about exactly this type of thing, it was part of why he ran, one class wasn't good enough, _wouldn't be_ good enough for her. He had offered that once, back during an early fight when they were still managing to talk, rather than yell. Obviously it hadn't gone over well, or things wouldn't have escalated to him running away.

He huffed out a breath and slumped down onto the couch. 'She still sees me as her _baby_ , not a 17- well, _18_ -year-old (according to my new paperwork), who can make his own choices and decisions. Maybe not always the best ones yet, but now I have people around me that are more willing to let me make my own mistakes, and they don't care if I'm not _perfect_.' Luke rubbed his hands over his face and then sat up tall, he knew what he had to do. 'I'm not going to worry about it. If it comes up, it comes up, and if not, that's okay too. I will be calm if she says anything, and I will remember that I have a whole group of people who are my family standing behind me. I will be kind, but firm if I need to. And things will be okay, I'm going to believe that.' He nodded decisively once and got up to head back in the house where everyone was hanging out and relaxing. He had asked for a little time to himself, and they had all respected that, it was nice.  
  
But, he paused, there were a few other things on his mind to sort out. Ever since he and Julie had talked in the studio after he got back from Canada, so many things had fallen into place, but so many thoughts were chasing each other around in his head. She said she _loved_ him. It was still so unbelievable, but he was trying to accept it. As confident as he appeared, or tried to appear, he was just as insecure as any other 18-year-old boy, in love with an incredible girl he really thought was too good for him. Possibly _more_ , what with him being a _ghost_ that was mostly human again. 'Julie was _everything_.' That thought rang true, but also made him re-evaluate everything he had thought about himself. 'Music was always the only thing that mattered to me. Well, aside from the guys. I suppose a better way to put it is that it was the most _important_ thing, outside of my friends. But. I _meant_ it when I told Julie it didn't mean anything if it wasn't with her.' He spun back, away from the door, and resumed pacing. 'Things have happened so fast. I was a optimistic 17-year-old, ready to be offered a record deal and become famous all over the world, all of that taken away by a bad street dog. Boom, I was in a dark room for what felt like only an hour, but was really _25 years_. And then Julie brought me back, brought _us_ back. _I love her_. There's no question of that, but so many things have changed, _I've_ changed.' 

Luke ran a hand through his hair, taking a deep breath and trying to organize his thoughts. 'One: I love Julie. Two: I love my friends. Alex and Reggie, surprisingly Bobby again, and even Willie, he's great and he makes Alex so happy. Three: I also _love_ Ray, and Carlos. I was an only child, and having a little kinda-brother is actually pretty amazing. It's also different to have an adult that just cares about me because he _wants_ to, not because he's obligated, Ray _does that_. And I do love my parents, but my mom has always been a little _controlling_ , and my dad, well. He's always tried to be there, but been more quiet, not as open with his support of me, like he's not quite sure how to express himself sometimes. Argh, why do I feel so restless right now?!' He froze, suddenly realizing exactly what it was. He was unconsciously humming a new melody, tapping his fingers against his leg as he paced. 'It's a new song! I should know better than to overthink things, music always clarifies my thoughts and feelings. Now, where's my guitar?'

Striding across the floor, he grabbed his acoustic and strummed a few chords. _This_ is what he needed. 

Everything just coalesced into a melody and lyrics for him, faster than almost ever before. This was for all the people in his family, the way they were there for him no matter what. It was like he could feel the song, the harmonies forming easily in his head. It wasn't exactly a duet, but he knew it could be, with Julie's insight and input.

_"When love’s a battle_   
_And life’s a war_   
_When I just can’t go on fighting anymore_   
_When I’m surrounded_   
_And they’re closing in_   
_When I feel the bullets graze against my skin_

_This world’s a war zone_   
_But I’ve got a shield_   
_And I won’t surrender_   
_'Cause your love feels_   
_Like an army of angels_   
_Like an army of angels_   
_Like an army of angels_   
_Like an army of angels_

_Hey hey_   
_If hate is poison then loves the cure_   
_And it’s you that drives the demons from my door_   
_When they got me cornered_   
_Close to giving in_   
_Oh, I feel you round me like a second skin_

_This world’s a war zone_   
_But I’ve got a shield_   
_And I won’t surrender_   
_'Cause your love feels_   
_Like an army of angels_   
_Like an army of angels_   
_Like an army of angels_   
_Like an army of angels_

_Through the flames and the fire I will go_   
_'Cause I know, yeah, I know that I’m not alone_   
_Through the flames and the fire I will go_   
_'Cause I know, yeah, I know that I’m not alone_

_Oh, what a beautiful sight whoa_   
_A hundred thousand soldiers in the sky whoa_   
_I don’t need to worry tonight_   
_With you by my side, yeah_

_Like an army of angels_   
_Like an army of angels_   
_Like an army of angels_   
_Like an army of angels, angels, angels_

_Like an army of angels_   
_Like an army of angels_   
_Like an army of angels_   
_Like an army of angels_

_Through the flames and the fire I will go_   
_'Cause I know, yeah, I know that I’m not alone_   
_Through the flames and the fire I will go_   
_'Cause I know, yeah, I know that I’m not alone"_

All the people inside the house right now (and a few other places)? Well, they were there for him, and as he scribbled down the words and notes of this new song, his restlessness disappeared. This was the pure _feeling_ , the expression of his thoughts, that he had been searching for, and getting it out of his head had settled him. He sent a quick prayer up to Rose, Julie's mom, thanking her for anything and everything she might have done that got him to this moment, and given him these people, and this _family_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know why I'm apparently kinda a little bit salty towards Luke's mom, but I can't seem to not be? I must be channeling Ray or something. *shrug*
> 
> It's a little short, but I figured a small update was better than nothing?
> 
> The song is "Army of Angels" by The Script (basically one of my favorite bands EVER)


	25. Part Vingt-cinq

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So, this happened. Dinner with Luke's parents. Protective!Ray. Just, this happened. Guess you get a heavy milestone 25th chapter.

Part Vingt-cinq

\---------------------------------------------------

The dinner with Luke's parents was.... it wasn't exactly going well. It was...interesting. He knew things had been good when Julie and Luke went to dinner to tell his dad about him being back. But, based on the pieces of phone conversations he had caught between Luke and his parents since then, he could tell things had already started to become tense again. His mom wanted him home, Luke didn't want to go, knew it was a bad idea and got frustrated because she wasn't listening. Then his dad would make a comment trying to diffuse things, but it would be ignored by both of them. This dinner was a front row seat to _exactly_ why Luke had been hesitant when Ray first suggested inviting Emily and Mitch over. Ray found he was both fascinated and uncomfortable at the way Emily Patterson tried to baby her son. He understood that they had fought, and then she had been grieving his _death_ , but he _had_ still been _seventeen_ when he died, not _seven_.

"Baby, are you sure you don't want some more green beans? They're so healthy for you, honey!"

Not to mention, Luke was still _kinda_ a ghost, which, no one was sure how that worked, but even Ray was pretty sure more green beans weren't going to change anything.

"Mom! I'm _f_ _ine_." Luke answered through clenched teeth. 'This is exactly why I cannot go home, I love her, but she makes me _insane_!'

"Emily, let the boy eat in peace." Mitch was sympathetic to his son. 'Emily has never been good with not being in control, I've tried to tell her to loosen up, but she never listens.'

Ray decided to jump in, the other faces around the table were having trouble keeping their looks of horrified fascination with these interactions under wraps. "So, we got Reggie signed up for a beginning photography class in the spring at the community college. Isn't that great?"

"That's great Reggie!" Mitch happily grabbed onto this new topic.

Reggie opened his mouth to reply, but quickly snapped it shut as Emily spoke up again.

"That's great. Have _you_ thought about signing up for any classes, baby?" Emily's eyes were on Luke, a familiar tone of expectation permeating the seemingly innocent question.

Luke's breath stuck in his throat, he couldn't do this again. His eyes sought out his dad's, _begging_ him to make it stop before it started.

"Uh, Emily, I think we were talking about Reggie, right now." Mitch _hated_ getting between the two of them. It was why he had always liked Reggie and was more than happy to have him stay over in high school, at least before the fights between Emily and Luke had started getting bad. Then Luke had stopped inviting him, instead _he_ was the one going to stay with Reggie. Mitch understood Reggie, his parents had fought too, it was why he couldn't handle the fights between his wife and son, usually just going for a walk whenever they got into it. With Luke back from the _dead_ though, he had promised himself that he would try harder to stand up for his son.

"We did, it's wonderful for him. And now I want to know if my son is going to do the sensible thing and sign up for classes himself."

Nope. That's it. Ray was done. Even though he knew Luke had signed up for a class, it was obvious this was not the time to discuss it. He stood up, and cleared his throat loudly. "Well, I think we've all eaten our fill tonight. Luke, would you please help Julie with the dishes? And the rest of you, I know the studio is a mess after you watched movies out there today, why don't you go get things cleaned up?" They may have been framed as questions, but everyone responded to the tone of command running through Ray's words. 

"Emily, Mitch, why don't you let me walk you out?" His gaze zeroed in on Emily, and her defiant look collapsed into defeat as she nodded. Mitch couldn't help but reach out and squeeze Ray's shoulder behind Emily's back as they walked to the door, shooting him a look of pure relief and _gratitude_.

The three of them stepped outside, and Ray took a deep breath, and looking Emily right in the eyes he spoke, softly but with underlying steel, "I will not have you making little comments to Luke, and belittling his choices while you are in my house. He is an _exceptional_ young man, and while I thought for a short while it was _because_ of you, I am now forced to believe it is _in spite_ of you. You obviously love him very much, and he loves you. But you very clearly DO NOT _understand_ him. I know that family dynamics can be hard, and you have been through a whole lot of pain, especially since you fought before he, well, died. However. He is back now, and you have a chance to _be better_. Go talk to someone, I can get you the name of my friend Bobby's therapist if you want, but _figure out_ how to let go of _your expectations_ and let him be _himself_. I'm sorry, but you are not welcome in my home until you do. I can't say how Luke feels, but according to his paperwork he is legally 18, so it will be up to him if he wants to stay in contact with you. Emily, _don't waste this second chance_. Find a way to be happy with him _as who he is_."

Emily's face had crumpled in anguish as he spoke, she knew he was right. Mitch had been trying to tell her the same thing for _years_ , even before Luke died. She managed to reply to Ray through her tears, "I _know_ it's a problem. I will start speaking to someone, I promise. I don't want to lose him again."

Mitch wrapped an arm around her ready to lead her to their car, "Thank you for being there for him Ray, he deserves the support of someone like you. Would it be okay if I called you once in awhile? Just to see how he's doing?" 

Ray smiled at him, "Sure, but if I know him at all, I think he probably won't mind at least speaking to you on the phone occasionally himself. Good night, you two."

"Good night Ray, maybe in a few months we can try dinner again." Mitch nodded down at his wife, silently crying against his shoulder. "I think this was a good wake-up call."

She pulled herself together long enough to sniffle and nod, "It was, I needed to have some sense knocked into me. Thanks." 

Ray watched them leave, staying outside for a few more long minutes, hoping Luke would understand.

\------------------------------------------------

When he finally turned and went to open the door, he found it was already open a crack, frowning he gently pushed it open. 

And quickly found his arms full with a sobbing teenage boy in a beanie. 

"N-no one...has ev-ever... y-you... _th-thank you_ Ray. I-I, sh-she...a-and you just! _Thank you!_ " Luke stopped trying to speak and just buried his face in Ray's shoulder, his arms tight, as if Ray would disappear if he let go.

Ray had automatically hugged him back, and pulled him closer as he deciphered the disjointed words, his heart cracking right down the middle as he looked up and met his daughter's eyes, his vision a bit blurry from his own tears, but clear enough to see she was also crying. She didn't look that sad, though, rather she was beaming at him with _pride_ and _thankfulness_. 

If he thought about it, that _did_ make sense, he had seen the way Julie's face had tightened, could almost hear her teeth grinding, as she held her tongue every time Emily spoke and a little wince would flash across Luke's face. He would bet money if he hadn't done something, she would have. He didn't think he wanted to _know_ what she might have said, he felt protective and even did love Luke, but Julie _loved_ Luke. If she had any of her mother in her, and she absolutely did, she would have been an incredible force, and that probably wouldn't have been a good thing at this time. Ray was relieved he was able to take care of it instead.

Now, what to do with the boy still crying and sniffling in his arms?

"Julie. Why don't you go help the others in the studio, maybe _keep_ them on task?" He raised an eyebrow at her, silently asking if she understood.

Her eyes widened, and she nodded. Starting to turn, she hesitated, glancing at Luke and looking a bit torn. 

"Mija. I've got this."

"O-okay." She finally headed for the door, managing to only look back once as she exited through it and closed it behind herself.

\-------------------------------------------

Ray led Luke over to the couch, never pulling away or letting go, and got them settled down onto the cushions. Ray _was_ a dad, he could tell Luke wasn't ready to talk yet, so he just leaned back, rubbing his hand over Luke's back in a soothing motion. He wasn't the best singer, but he was at least decent at carrying a tune, so he began softly humming a song Rose used to sing to Julie and Carlos when they were little. He smiled, he was the one who had shown her that there was more to country music that just songs about trucks.

He just kept humming and sliding his hand over Luke's back, willing to give him whatever time he needed.

Luke finally stirred in his arms, sitting up and rubbing his red-rimmed eyes. He looked a bit lost on what to do next, avoiding Ray's eyes.

"Luke." Ray waited until he reluctantly made eye contact. "I've got you, okay? No matter what, and with no matter _who_. The same goes for the other guys, but I _need_ you to understand, because I think you've been trying so hard to be strong for so long, thinking that your issues with your parents weren't as important as theirs, because you knew your parents loved you and they were always telling you they just wanted what was best for you. But that doesn't mean it's not complicated and difficult, and it's _okay_ to be upset about it."

Luke's eyes were wide, a few tears forming again. He coughed a little and cleared his throat, his voice still coming out raspy and broken, "I guess I've never thought about it like that."

Ray couldn't have stopped himself if he tried, he just pulled the boy back into his arms for another hug. 

  
\------------------------------------------------------------------

They were still on the couch when Julie finally crept back inside, the only difference being Luke was now laying down, his head on a pillow on Ray's lap, fast asleep.

"Papi? Is- is he okay?" She whispered as she came up next to the couch, looking down at them.

"He's fine, mija. It was just an overwhelming evening. I think he's going to sleep right here tonight, what did you tell everyone?"

"I told them you and Luke were discussing his parents, and they should just put on some more movies and stay out there tonight, even Carlos." She giggled softly, "He was actually pretty excited, he decided to introduce them to the two 'National Treasure' movies, I think Willie has maybe seen them, he was nodding at Carlos as he pitched the idea. I just told them I was tired and I was going to go to bed."

Ray's gaze fell on the boy in his lap, "That's good. As close as he, Reggie, and Alex are, I think I need to start taking some more time with each of them. They try to be strong for each other, which is great, but everyone needs a chance to _not_ be strong once in awhile. Even if Luke opened up to them about a lot, it was obvious to me tonight that there was plenty he hadn't shared." His words were barely a murmur, said almost more to himself, than Julie.

"I love you Papi." Julie had a few tears on her cheeks, Luke was _so_ important to her, the other guys too. She was ridiculously glad her dad understood, and was willing to help them, and be there for them. "You are the _absolute best_."

He looked up and smiled at her, "Thank you mija. I love you like crazy too. Now go on up to bed. I'll make breakfast burritos tomorrow, okay?"

Julie grinned and bounced excitedly at that, it had been _ages_ since he had made those, and they were _so_ good.

"Goodnight, Papi."

"Goodnight, mija."

\----------------------------------

Ray sat there for a long time after she left, thinking about the boys. He had started to get closer to Reggie, and he hoped that spending more time talking about photography, now that he would have the class, would help the boy open up more. So far it was pretty clear he wasn't ready to discuss anything too serious about his childhood and his parents. It was hard, but Ray knew he had to let Reggie come to him. Then there was Alex, he was even tougher. Aside from the moment in the studio when Willie had joined their growing family, he didn't really talk much to Ray. He was going to take a lot of care and especially _patience_.

Luke shifted in his sleep, his hand reaching up and grabbing Ray's where it rested on his shoulder, " _...Ray... safe._ " He sighed in his sleep, relaxing as he tugged Ray's hand down, clutching it to his chest. 

_'Oh.'_ Ray leaned back and shoved a throw pillow behind his head with his free hand, looks like he'll be sitting here all night. There was _no way_ he'd be leaving Luke alone _now_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I- I'm not sure where this came from? I'm sorry for the angst. I already have a few much more fluffy scenes started, even one that will be part of a chapter on Julie's birthday. I was up really late working on this, it's like 4 am as I'm posting, so not sure how much I'll get done tomorrow on the next chapter, but more will be coming!
> 
> PS: If anyone cares, the song Ray hums is 'The Change' by Garth Brooks. It's really good.


	26. Part Vingt-six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Still some angst, but I had to get through it to get to the other side, as it were. This is the next morning. Also, what were Alex's and Reggie's thoughts? And Luke talks to them about what happened.

Part Vingt-six

\-----------------------------------------------------

When Luke woke up that Sunday morning, he was incredibly disoriented. His eyes felt sticky, and there was some soft snoring coming from above him. And, oh, he was holding someone's hand?

He slowly turned and recognized Ray, memories of the previous evening flooding back. 'H-he _stayed_ with me.' A few tears slipped out and he quickly reached up to wipe them away.

This movement, however, woke Ray, and he blinked, smiling down at Luke softly, squeezing his hand once before pulling away and stretching his arms over his head. * _Yawn_ * "So, Luke, will you help be make breakfast burritos this morning? There's a lot of prep and several steps, so I could use an assistant."

Luke just stared at him for a moment, then, "Yes, of course. That would be great."

"Perfect! Now, why don't you go wash up a little, and I will start getting the ingredients out?"

Luke sat up and they both got off the couch. "Ray..." Luke's voice was small.

"Yeah, Luke?" 

" _Thank you_."

Ray reached out and gently shook Luke's shoulder a little, " _I've got you_ , mijo." 

They shared a long look, and Luke finally just nodded, sniffling a bit and turned to go to the restroom and wash his face. 

\----------------------------------------------------------------

Back in the studio, it had been a restless night for Reggie and Alex. They hadn't known, not really. Luke's family had always seemed like the most normal of the three of them, and he never really said much beyond the big thing, his mom not wanting him in the band. 

Reggie had laid awake for quite awhile after the movies, staring at the ceiling and trying to figure out when Luke had stopped telling them everything. He used to go to Luke's house when the fighting got bad between his parents, but then, Luke had started coming to his house, and then the studio once they got the couch. It had been almost gradual, and he felt awful for not really noticing. Even when Luke had written 'Unsaid Emily', the guys just thought it was about the big fight and that was it. They remembered Emily as loving and involved in Luke's life, to Reggie especially, that seemed like the best thing ever. Alex had always had complicated feelings about parents, there had been tension between him and his for almost as long as Reggie could remember, they had always pushed Alex towards more 'manly' stuff, but he just wasn't interested. 'But why didn't Luke ever _say_ anything? That wasn't just about the band, that was a complete lack of understanding of _Luke_ and everything that makes him happy and _him_ , the little digs about the "music hobby" not to mention the little comments about how and what he should eat.' Reggie thought hard, 'Were there things I should have noticed back when we were younger? I mean, the look on his face at the table, stoic, with little flashes of hurt when she said things, it was kinda like watching someone be attacked and not lifting a hand to defend themselves. I know Julie told us to stay out here, and I believe Ray can help, but I _need_ to be there for Luke too. We are going to need some serious time together tomorrow, he needs to know we're here for him and he didn't need to hide how bad he was really hurting.' Reggie finally fell into an uneasy sleep, he couldn't wait to give Luke a hug in the morning.

Alex was also awake late, he was on his side, staring into the darkness towards the door. 'I knew Luke always seemed to understand my problems with my parents, but that was _crazy_. There was obviously a lot more going on than just her wanting him to quit the band, and me and Reggie both missed it. We need to do better, he never hesitated to be there for us, always cheering us up and making us smile. I think we forgot he had a lot going on too.' Alex gasped, rolling onto his back, ' _Oh, no_ , we've _still_ been doing that, no _wonder_ he's in there with Ray and Julie. We _died_ and ended up _ghosts_ and all he's done is encourage us and push us to look on the bright side. Sure, we knew about him visiting his parents, and we helped get Julie back in the band by showing her, but _he's_ the one who even thought of asking her to be in the band in the first place! He was generous enough to help her, basically a _stranger_ by giving her 'Bright', just so she could get back in the music program. We _need_ to do better.' He tossed and turned for a long time, eventually falling into an exhausted sleep.  
  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------

The breakfast burritos were almost done, and Julie had made her way downstairs, her eyes still sleepy, and gone straight to Luke for a hug. She held him tight and he curled into her, his face buried in her hair, a position that had fast become one of their favorites. 

Ray watched them out of the corner of his eye as he rolled the last of the breakfast burritos. A pang of nostalgia went through him, that was similar to the way he used to hold Rose. He sent a message up to her, 'Our daughter found a good one, honey. I still don't know if you had anything to do with sending them here, but it's been the best thing to happen since we lost you. Thank you.'

When Luke and Julie finally stepped back, immediately entwining their hands as a way to keep contact, he turned to them and smiled, "Mija, why don't you and Luke go wake everyone up and bring them in for breakfast?"

She smiled back at him, "Sure, Dad. We'll be right back."

They went out the back door. There was a lightness to Luke today that hadn't been there before, things weren't totally resolved, but Luke had needed last night with her dad. She paused on the last step, tugging on Luke's hand and pulling him around to face her. "I love you."

He blinked at her, before breaking into a huge heart-stopping version of _her_ smile, "I love you too. So freaking much, Jules."

She beamed at him and leaned forward, dropping his hand to wrap her arms around his neck and kiss him. It was nice that she was still on the last step, and he was on the ground, it made them almost the same height. His arms slid around her, and they stayed wrapped together for a few long minutes, even after finally breaking the kiss, they pressed their foreheads together, just enjoying holding each other.

The creak of the studio door being pushed open intruded on their solitude, and they turned to see Carlos rubbing his eyes and yawning, his hair standing up everywhere. "Oh, hey. Is there breakfast?" There was a hopeful note in his voice, he loved that his dad was cooking more again.

"Yup. Guess what?" Julie grinned at her little brother.

His eyes went wide and he started jumping up and down a little. "No! Really?! Breakfast burritos?!"

"Yes!"

"Yuuuuummmm!" Carlos dodged past them and almost flew up the stairs, those were his _favorite_.

Julie and Luke laughed at his enthusiasm and walked into the studio to wake up the others, if Carlos's yelling hadn't done it already.

They found Willie sitting up, he nodded at them, "What was Carlos yelling about?"

"Breakfast, it's all ready, but it's his favorite, so you better get in there." Julie told him with a teasing look.

"Cool. Thanks guys."

Julie and Luke were left with just Alex, still asleep on his air mattress, and the faint sound of Reggie snoring from the loft.

She glanced at Luke, then up to the loft, and down to Alex at their feet. "I'm going to go make sure there's plenty of food left for you guys. Take your time, Luke." She went up on her tip-toes and kissed him on the cheek, squeezing his hand. "Just talk to them, you all need it."

With a last reassuring nod, she slipped back out the door, leaving him alone with his friends, his _family_. It may have recently grown, but he, Alex, and Reggie were still _brothers_ , and Julie was right, they needed to talk.

\------------------------------------------------------

Luke stood there, wondering about the best way to wake them both up at once. His eyes darted around the studio, finally falling on the piano. Julie had been teaching him a few basics, so he sauntered over and lifted the lid. Arranging his fingers carefully, he forcefully pressed down the keys for a C Major chord. The loud, bright sound did the trick. He heard Reggie snort mid snore and a slight thump as he rolled off his air mattress, Alex just bolted up, his head swiveling wildly, one drumstick held up in his hand, trying to figure out what was happening.

Luke couldn't hold back a laugh, his friends were ridiculous. And he loved them.

Finally Alex woke up enough to register Luke standing by the piano. " _Luke!_ "

" _Luke?!"_ Reggie's voice screeched from the loft, followed by scrambling and then Reggie was practically falling down the ladder in his haste. 

Luke closed the piano lid and came out from behind it, just in time, too. The boys converged on him and threw their arms around him, practically smothering him in their efforts to convey how worried they had been.

"We didn't know it was so bad!"

"We love you, you could have told us!"

The rest of their words tumbled over each other and Luke couldn't quite catch any more. He desperately wiggled free, holding his hands up so they wouldn't grab him again. "Guys, it's _fine_."

They both crossed their arms and frowned at him.

" _I promise_. Ray took care of it, and we talked. I know there's some stuff I didn't tell you, and I'm sure I _will_ tell you at some point, but for now, it's okay. _I'm_ okay."

Alex and Reggie exchanged a long look, both of them clearly dubious about his claim of being okay. 

"Guys, Ray is incredible. Just- if you ever have to talk about _anything_ , just, he's there. I've never really had that, not exactly, and I know you haven't either. But, he's _awesome_. _Trust me._ " 

"Oo-kay, I guess." Alex still had trouble with the idea of good parents, last night with Luke's parents not helping. Ray had been so nice about Willie, and he hadn't done anything to make Alex wary, he had only been kind and generous with them. Alex did like him, so he could probably afford to loosen up and try to get to know him better.

"Yes! I told you guys he had a good heart."

Luke patted Reggie on the shoulder, "You were absolutely right, buddy."

"Luke." Alex fidgeted a bit with the hem of his shirt. "I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry?" Luke was confused, Alex sounded _so_ serious.

"We died, and then we came back, and me and Reggie kept freaking out about everything, and you just always stayed positive and tried to help us. We knew you were going to your parents', but I know _I_ never really asked about it, or let you know you could talk to me. I wasn't very good about being there for you, and I'm sorry."

Reggie's eyes had widened, and he was nodding in agreement by the time Alex finished. "He's right. Even when we were stuck at the Club, you were thinking about Julie and encouraging us, we wouldn't have made it out if it weren't for you. I know you distracted Caleb so we could get away first. That's why you were flickering, why it took so long. He was directing all his power at you then, trying to keep you there."

Luke's eyes went cold, empty, and he shivered. That was one of the worst moments he could ever remember. It had _hurt_. He shook himself, 'One more thing to thank Julie for, if she hadn't been singing and found my eyes when I was flickering I would never have made it out.' He cleared his throat, "You guys don't have to be sorry. We're good."

"Well, we are sorry. And we _promise_ we won't take you for granted anymore, Luke."

"Yeah, we're here for you, Luke, always."

"Aww, guys." He opened his arms and they united in a three-way group hug, happy that their bond would only be stronger after this.

\------------------------------------------------------

When they got inside, they found Julie fending Carlos off with a wooden spoon, clutching the edge of a platter of breakfast burritos, hiding them behind her on the counter. "No, you've had like 5! We have to save some for the others!"

Willie and Ray were leaning on the back of the couch, just watching in amusement. Ray saw them and leaned his head a bit to speak to Willie, his voice purposely loud enough to carry, "Should we tell them there's a whole other platter hidden in the oven?" Ray met Luke's eyes and winked. They had made _a ton_ , but Ray had been giddy about playing this prank on Julie and Carlos. Luke grinned back at him warmly, Ray had a great sense of humor, he was so much fun.

"What?!" The two siblings froze in their battle and glared at their dad, before both lunging towards the oven. This set off gales of laughter from everyone watching. 'Yeah, the best thing. Thanks Rose.' Ray thought happily. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew. This turned into a little bit of Luke appreciation, but he really did do those things, and I totally HC the part about the guys at the club, and why it took Luke so much more effort. The next chapter should be a little more fluffy, and it features a little bit of Carrie.


	27. Part Vingt-sept

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Julie and Carrie have a talk.

Part Vingt-sept

\-------------------------------------------------------------

“Julie!” Carrie walked up to her and Flynn at Julie's locker, and they turned to look at her. Flynn’s automatic sarcastic comment dying on her lips as they took in Carrie's outfit and demeanor. There wasn't any sparkles or glitter, and she looked tired.

"Look, I know I haven't been the nicest person to you two lately." 

Flynn raised an eyebrow, her mouth opening again, but Julie grabbed her arm and squeezed, so she snapped it shut with a slightly disgruntled glance at Julie.

"Okay, _maybe_ a little longer than just lately. I've had some stuff going on myself."

"What's on your mind Carrie?" Julie's voice was wary, but encouraging. She knew things would be different now, since Bobby was Carrie's dad, and he was fast becoming an important person in her house. Soon, the house across the street instead, once the sale closed and the guys moved in over there. 

Carrie sighed, looking down, and was obviously trying to gather her thoughts. "Okay, so I talked to my dad and he has had some sort of weird 'life epiphany'." She used air quotes and rolled her eyes. "I swear that's actually what he called it! Weirdo. BUT, basically he has decided to start, like, mentoring younger bands and stuff, instead of working on a new album himself. It's been a few years since his last one, he really should just admit he's already retired, but, whatever. _Anyway_ , my point is that he wanted me to give you this, and invite you and your band over for dinner later this week." 

She handed an envelope to Julie, who took it automatically.

"He said your band reminded him of some de... _old_ friends or something." She avoided Julie's eyes, uncomfortable, she was there to apologize, not bring up death and remind her of her mom. 'Get it together Carrie! You can do this!'

Luckily, her discomfort distracted her from the quick wide-eyed glance of alarm between Julie and Flynn, both of them knowing Bobby wouldn't have told her much, but still wondering what she _did_ now know.

Carrie cleared her throat, "My point is, your band made him think about things, and besides wanting to help them, and you Julie, he has also decided to do the same with 'Dirty Candi'. I've always wanted him to take more of an interest and now he finally is. So. As _much_ as it pains me to say this, _thank you_." The attempted sting of her grudging appreciation was rather ruined by the playful, rather than spiteful, tone in her voice and the small, slightly shy, and completely _genuine_ smile on her face as she turned to walk away. 

Flynn stared after her for a long moment before looking at Julie and asking, "Do you think she's been replaced, like she's now a pod person or something? We know ghosts are real so maybe other things are too?"

Julie blinked at her best friend, "You're been watching old horror movies with my dad and the guys again, haven't you? Which one is that from? 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers'?"

"No. That was aliens. Wait, you're right, those were pod people. I was actually thinking 'The Stepford Wives'. Designer robots." Flynn shook her head, "Too busy writing songs with Luke to come absorb some _culture_ with me, the other guys, and Carlos, but still smart about it. I guess they _are_ some of your dad's favorites and you've already seen them." She grinned at Julie and headed off down the hall, her mom had texted that she was waiting to pick her up. "See you later!"

A laugh bubbled out of Julie as she finished zipping up her backpack. 'I have _got_ to talk to my dad about his choices in movies to show the guys. Really, there are so many better ones. I don't care if he likes to contrast the old ones with the remakes as part of his 'education in shot-framing' for Reggie or whatever he's calling it. Maybe we can start the Marvel movies this weekend.' She slammed her locker door and realized she was still holding the envelope from Carrie. Deciding she was too curious to wait until she got home, she opened it and started to read.

\---------------------------

'Julie,

I know I saw you the other day, and, if she followed directions, Carrie has asked if you and the guys would come over for dinner (part of asking her to do this was so she didn't have an excuse to procrastinate talking to you again- I know she has some things she needs to say). But, I also wanted to say a few things to you personally that I haven't had the chance to yet. 

The number one thing I want to say, Julie, is _THANK YOU_.

The way you all let me help with bringing your band from **Canada** , and giving me the chance to get to **know them** , well, it has changed my life. I talked a lot to Reggie on the plane flight **home** , and he made me realize that I haven't been very fair to Carrie. I always just pushed her to make it on her own with Dirty Candi (although we had a firm agreement that any offers she may get _HAD_ to go through me and my lawyers, don't worry!) but talking to Reggie made me see that I didn't have to introduce her to producers or use my fame to get her a record deal, but I still need to do better at being there and encouraging her, as her _dad_. I obviously have some complicated feelings about open mic nights, and that has impeded my support of Dirty Candi, even though I should have been there for Carrie. I'm trying to fix that now. 

I also can't thank you and the guys enough for inadvertently being the inspiration for my new venture. I'm sure Carrie rolled her eyes when she told you I called it a 'life epiphany', but I really do want to start being a mentor to younger people who want to break into the music scene. I had such a **bad experience** , so if I can make sure that doesn't happen to even one or two other kids, then maybe I'll feel like I did something worthwhile. 

I can't go back in time and fix **things** , but maybe that's okay. Maybe all of this was supposed to happen the way it did. I know your mom would have said so, she always told me that things happen for a reason. I always thought it was ridiculous, considering what had gone on in my life. Now, I have to say, I'm just not sure.

Please share this with your dad, too, because this is what I want to say to him:

Ray, thanks for your **idea**. Thanks for asking **me** to make things happen. Thanks for being the reason I could face my **past**. And _thank you_ for being the kind of dad that I want to start being. I know we talked on the flight to Canada, but I look forward to having the chance to talk to you a lot more. Rose had amazing taste when she picked you, I'm so glad we can be friends, and I'm sorry I wasn't good at being there for you this past year.

I look forward to seeing you all at dinner, and I'm absolutely including you Ray, and Carlos, Willie, and Flynn in that invitation. I'll call you to figure out a good night.

Thank you,  
Bobby'

Julie was deeply touched, and the bolded words gave her everything she needed to figure out what he _wasn't_ saying, it was probably good not to mention certain things on paper. She sighed, the boys had been _so wrong_ about Bobby when they first found out about him and their songs. It was a good reminder that there are always stories behind people, and she suddenly recalled Carrie's words, 'I've had some stuff going on myself.' A determined expression crossed her face, it was time to let the little things that had come between them go, maybe they wouldn't be best friends again, but they could be _friendly_. 

Julie glanced down the hall towards where Carrie had disappeared. The music room was down there, and, yes, faintly she could hear a few notes from the piano. She squared her shoulders and walked down the hall, better to talk things out now, alone, then trying to do it when there were a bunch of other people around. 

  
\-----------------------------------------------

As Julie neared the door to the music room, the piano was joined by Carrie singing. She sounded sad. Julie recognized the song, and she slipped in and sat in a chair near the door, just listening.

_'New to town with a made up name in the angel's city,_  
_Chasing fortune and fame._  
_And the camera flashes, make it look like a dream._

_You had it figured out since you were in school._  
_Everybody loves pretty, everybody loves cool._  
_So overnight you look like a sixties’ queen._

_Another name goes up in lights, like diamonds in the sky."_

  
Carrie stopped. "What do you want, Julie?" The question was soft, not angry.

"Please keep playing Carrie, you sound amazing." Julie's response was just as soft.

Carrie huffed out an exhausted-sounding breath. After a short silence, she resumed playing and singing.

_'And they’ll tell you now, you’re the lucky one._  
_Yeah, they’ll tell you now, you’re the lucky one._  
_But can you tell me now, you’re the lucky one, oh, oh, oh..._

_Now it’s big black cars, and Riviera views,_  
_And your lover in the foyer doesn't even know you_  
_And your secrets end up splashed on the news front page._

_And they tell you that you’re lucky._  
_But you’re so confused,_  
_'Cause you don’t feel pretty, you just feel used._  
_And all the young things line up to take your place._

_Another name goes up in lights. You wonder if you’ll make it out alive._

_And they’ll tell you now, you’re the lucky one._  
_Yeah, they’ll tell you now, you’re the lucky one._  
_Can you tell me now, you’re the lucky one, oh, oh, oh._

_It was a few years later, I showed up here._  
_And they still tell the legend of how you disappeared,_  
_How you took the money and your dignity, and got the hell out._  
_They say you bought a bunch of land somewhere,_  
_Chose the Rose Garden over Madison Square,_  
_And it took some time, but I understand it now._

_‘Cause now my name is up in lights, but I think you got it right,_

_Let me tell you now, you’re the lucky one._  
_Let me tell you now, you’re the lucky one._  
_Let me tell you now, you’re the lucky one, oh, oh, oh._

_Yeah they’ll tell you now, you’re the lucky one._  
_Yeah, they’ll tell you now, you’re the lucky one._  
_And they’ll tell you now, you’re the lucky one, oh, oh, oh._  
_Oh, whoa, oh, oh'_

  
As the echo of the last notes faded, Julie stood up and went over to sit next to Carrie on the piano bench. "So, you said you had some stuff going on? Do you want to talk about it?"

Carrie bent her head, twisting her hands in her lap. Her voice barely more than a whisper, she broke. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you with your mom. I was already feeling left out because you and Flynn had gotten so close while I was on tour with my dad the previous summer. I got back and I all I wanted was to tell you guys about it, but it always seemed like when I called you or Flynn, you were already together, and inviting me to join you was an afterthought. Or you didn't pick up at all." Carrie sniffed and wiped a hand over her eyes. She still hadn't looked at Julie. "If I hadn't had the girls from dance and 'Dirty Candi', I would have been all alone most of the time! It was like you didn't even notice I wasn't there much anymore. And then your mom got sick, an-and, well. And I tried to talk to you, but you were always talking to _Flynn_. Your mom was always so nice to me, I liked her. I also have _experience_ missing having a mom, mine didn't even _want_ me. And it's not even close to the same, I know that, but, well, I would have got it a _little_ bit, you know? Thinking about things she wouldn't be there for?" 

She finally looked up at Julie, who hadn't moved, beyond her jaw dropping at these revelations. "Nick broke up with me because of what I said to you. I know it was mean. I know I've said quite a few mean things. But what I told him is true. I've been working my _butt_ off to get 'Dirty Candi' noticed, my dad has been committed to teaching me the value of working my way up on my own, and that's fine. But you got almost a _year_ of slack and special treatment, and as soon as you finally get cut from the music program, you find those guys and _literally_ upstage me at the Spirit Rally and get a 'special exception' to get back in! So tell me, am I really a demon like Flynn says?"

Julie could barely process this. 'Is she right?' She cast back, searching for her memories of her, Flynn and Carrie's deteriorating friendship. Snapshots of beach days and ice cream with Flynn, trips to the mall and the movies, missed calls and texts from Carrie, not noticed until the end of the day, the number of them dwindling as time passed, ran through her mind. 'We _did_ start to ignore her. We suck. The stuff about my mom- and _hers_ , is going to take some time to sort out. But she's certainly not _wrong_ about the way they let me stay in the music program for so long without participating.'

Julie refocused on Carrie, who had been waiting patiently for an answer to her question. "You're not a demon." Julie shook her head, and reached out to touch Carrie's shoulder, "But me and Flynn might have been terrible friends. I'm sorry."

A small smile crossed Carrie's lips. "Thank you for saying that. And _I'm_ really sorry about the comments I've made. My dad said the other day that some things happen for a reason, even if we don't know what it is right away. Maybe we needed to fight, so we could make up now, both of us trying to make it in music. I saw your show at the Orpheum. You guys really _are_ amazing."

Julie grinned and tugged Carrie into a hug. "Well, I've never _not_ thought 'Dirty Candi' was great, even when we weren't really talking."

Carrie laughed, Julie joining in. They both knew they still had a lot they needed to discuss, but this was a start.

\-----------------------------------------------

A phone call summoned Flynn over to Julie's that evening after dinner. Julie had told everyone she needed some girl time with Flynn. They all graciously agreed to leave them alone, although Luke did pull her aside to ask if everything was okay, he told her she seemed a little worried. She assured him it was fine and that she would tell him about it later. It was crazy how well he could read her sometimes, Julie _was_ a little worried about how Flynn would react to the slightly tenuous new beginning she had foraged with Carrie.

"Okay, girl, you were being so mysterious on the phone! What's going on?" The two girls were sitting next to each other on the end of Julie's bed.

"After you left school I went and found Carrie. We talked." Julie was watching Flynn carefully, she needed to get her to understand.

"Oh yeah?" Flynn raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, obviously biting back a probably not-so-nice comment.

"Just hear me out, this is important." Julie went on to fill Flynn in on everything Carrie had said, and stood her ground when Flynn tried to dismiss the idea that they had stopped including Carrie.

"We did. That was on _us_ Flynn."

"B-but, she's horrible, the stuff she's said, we agreed, she's horrible!"

"No."

Flynn groaned, she didn't want to admit it, but now that Julie had brought it up, she remembered the missed calls and texts, too. "Ugh. _Fine_. Maybe we did kinda suck. I _suppose_ I could try to be nicer, if she's gonna be nicer to _us_. No promises if she makes any of her little _comments_ , though."

"Just _try_ Flynn. That's all I ask, and hear her out if she asks to talk to you. She might want to clear the air with you before the dinner with Bobby at her house, and it would be nice if we could all at least be _civil_ for that." 

"It's not like I can say no to that, I guess." Flynn flopped back flat on the bed from her seated position. "You're my bestie, so I'll do it for you."

"Thanks, Flynn."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have realized that I have caused myself a bit of a timeline dilemma. Based on my HC guess of the show's timing, and the progression of time passing I've put into this fic, these scenes should be happening right about, well, now. Halfway through October, or even the end of October, but shhhh. I already have a scene written for Julie's birthday, which was supposed to be coming up, as I mentioned when the boys were in Canada and I had Luke buy her a birthday present. However. I really want to write a cute Halloween chapter (even if I have no idea of what would happen in it yet). Is her birthday before Halloween, after? What to do, what to do. Guess we'll see?
> 
> Just realized- the song is 'The Lucky One' of course by Taylor Swift😂


	28. Part Vingt-huit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carrie and Flynn make up.
> 
> Some Julie and Luke time.
> 
> Also, this is going up to 'teen' just to be safe. There's some slightly suggestive content in this chapter.
> 
> Some of you said sap was okay, here you go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Consent is key, but communication is also essential!

  
Part Vingt-huit

\-------------------------------------------------------------

It was Thursday, and Bobby had arranged with Ray for the dinner that night. It had been two days since Julie and Carrie had reached their truce, if not rekindled their friendship, and one day since Flynn and Carrie had had a heart-to-heart. The thing about Flynn is, she's loyal. She doesn't take betrayal well (hence the eggs she tried to tell Julie were a mistake, after she had lied about the band), but if she's in your corner, she is _all_ in. And after speaking to Carrie, she was once again, all in with her.

Julie was a little confused, but it was better than them continuing to snipe at each other, so she'd take it. The only problem was, they were suddenly whispering and giggling together, several times without her. Julie felt a little left out, but she was trying to ignore it, especially because they always welcomed her when she walked up, even if they were somewhat obviously changing the subject from whatever they had been talking about before.

\------------------------------------------------------

"So, we set for getting the decorations this weekend?" Flynn asked Carrie as they mixed up the topping for the apple crumble they were making for the dinner with everyone that night.

"Yeah, my dad is weirdly excited, he said he's going to talk to Julie's band and see if they would play some of his old songs with him for part of the night. They're suddenly, like, his favorite people."

Flynn ducked her head, "Mmhmm. _So_ , what costume are we going to _persuade_ Julie to wear?"

Carrie frowned in thought. "Well, you said she's dating that Luke guy in her band, what about a couple's costume? Do you think he would go for that?"

An evil grin spread across Flynn's face, "Oh, yes. That I would _love_ to see, and he's _stupid_ over her, so I'm sure we could get him on board."

"What are you thinking? You don't just smile like that and _not_ already have an idea." 

"Well, Julie's favorite movie used to be 'Aladdin', _and_ Luke is kinda allergic to sleeves."

Carrie cocked her head to the side, mentally trying to picture it. "Which Jasmine outfit for Julie? Turquoise or Red?"

"Ooh, definitely red, with the high ponytail."

Nodding in absolute agreement, Carrie slid the completed apple crumble in the oven and faced Flynn. "Thank you for letting me help."

"Hey, we talked and we're cool, Carrie."

A small smile and, "Well, still. Thanks." Carrie paused. "Do you think it's too much for her first birthday without her mom?"

"I think her mom would love it, and, while it may be bittersweet, Julie will be glad in the end not to have spent the day wallowing."

\-------------------------------------------------------------

Dinner at Bobby's was actually really nice. Julie hadn't realized how busy they had been, between the guys becoming solid, Willie joining them, the trip to Canada, Luke's stuff with his parents, and then Carrie, other then a bunch of family movie nights and a few songwriting sessions with Luke, the last few weeks had been crazy. She hadn't even realized Halloween was coming up, not that she was sure she was ready to do much celebrating this year. Her mom had _loved_ Halloween, and there was also the little matter of it being Julie's birthday. Her first without her mom.

\-------------------------------------------------------------

The food had been eaten, and everyone was just finishing up some awesome apple crumble that Carrie, and surprisingly Flynn, had made for tonight. Julie couldn't help but let her gaze drift to them at the other end of the table, once again whispering and giggling without her. On her left Carlos was absorbed in his dessert, and everyone else was engaged in a discussion about the way the music industry had changed in the last two decades, what with digital sales and streaming. Julie couldn't help but feel a bit detached, thoughts of Flynn and Carrie, and her mom, running through her mind.

Suddenly, though, she was choking a bit on her apple crumble. Luke was sitting on her right and he must have noticed her distant look, because he had leaned over and whispered in her ear, so close she could feel his breath, "Are you okay, Jules?"

Normally this would have been fine, but he had accompanied it with gently setting his hand on her leg under the table, and now Julie was _blushing_. It didn't help that she had already been distracted by him all night, he had on dark-wash jeans, a green pattern flannel that brought out the flecks of green in his hazel eyes, and a plain white t-shirt. It wasn't sleeveless, but it was _tight_. And earlier, before she had forced herself to focus on dinner, it had been a _struggle_ to keep her hands to herself. Things were only made worse by the fact Luke had gotten some new cologne in Canada, and he seemed to instinctively know the _perfect_ amount to wear, not too much (a pitfall so many teenage boys she knew fell into) but still enough, so when he was leaning into her space she couldn't _not_ want to bury her face into the crook of his neck and breathe in.   
  
"Jules?" 

'Oh, god. Whatever you do, Julie, _do not_ look into his eyes right now.' She scrambled to think of a response that wouldn't give her thoughts away. She quickly cleared her throat, "Um, what are you going to be for Halloween?" She could just tell he had a quizzical expression when he replied, "I hadn't really thought about it yet." 

Julie snuck a few deep breaths, "I don't know if I want to do the whole Halloween thing this year." She didn't know why she couldn't have thought of a different topic, she didn't really _want_ to talk about this, or she thought she didn't, but the words came spilling out to him anyway, "My mom loved Halloween."

He softly squeezed her leg, obviously trying to be reassuring (it was _not_ ). "And your dad mentioned it's also your birthday." His voice was quiet and sympathetic and right next to her ear again. She knew he was trying not to let the rest of the table overhear, in case she didn't want to talk about it with _everyone_ , which, to be fair, she didn't, but... It was just difficult to have this conversation when all she could think about was his hand on her leg and the fact that he was taking _forever_ to make the next move in their relationship. She didn't want much more than what they were doing now, but it would be nice if she knew he actually _wanted_ her. They hadn't even French kissed yet. And she _knew_ he could speak the language, so that seemed deeply unfair. God, all of this just made her miss her mom _so much_.  
  
Everything began crashing into her at once, and she turned to Luke, her eyes filling with tears. "Can we go outside? Please."

He was already half-standing before she even finished speaking, his arm going around her and pulling her up into his chest, shielding her face from the rest of the table. "Julie isn't feeling very well, I'm going to take her home." Luke shared a meaningful look with Ray, incidentally they had happened to have a conversation about how Julie might have some trouble with her birthday this year just the other day. 

"Thanks Luke. You okay getting an Uber?" This was said with a raised eyebrow, Ray was well aware Luke was just going to poof them home once they got outside.

"Yeah, it's all good."

Everyone tossed some "Feel better, Julie!" comments after them as Luke led her out.

\------------------------------------------------------

Luke landed them right in her room, maneuvering onto her bed and settling her right next to him. 

"I'm right here if you want to talk, but it's okay if you don't, too."

She shuffled around, climbing fully onto his lap and giving into the urge to hide her face in the crook of his neck. Aside from a few tears that had slipped out as they left dinner, Julie wasn't really crying anymore. She still felt overwhelmed, though. 'I wish I could tell my mom about Luke. She would love him, and she would have the best advice.' Julie hummed a little as Luke held her closer with one arm, his other hand going up to stroke her hair. 

'Actually, why _can't_ I tell my mom about him?' With a deep breath, Luke's scent filling her nose and completely relaxing her, she thought of her mom. 

'Hi mom. I still don't know if you sent the guys to me, but I can't thank you enough if you did. As I told you outside the Orpheum, they brought music back to me. Also, I-I've fallen in love with one of them. He's incredible on the guitar, and he sings, and we've written some amazing songs together. His name is Luke Patterson, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to spend forever with him. I can never convey how grateful I am that he's basically alive again. It's an insane miracle, and I'm never going to take it for granted. I was feeling a little overwhelmed because my birthday is coming up and you're not going to be there, and he's just holding me and _being there_.' She gave a purely mental sigh, 'Actually, part of why I was so overwhelmed is because I was feeling a little insecure. He's _gorgeous_ mom, and even though we've said 'I love you' I can't help but wonder...' 

\------------------------------------

Luke couldn't help but shift a little under her. He was in blissful agony. On the one hand, he _loved_ having Julie in his arms, sitting on his lap and breathing into his neck. On the other hand, well, he was a _17-year-old boy_ (well 18 according to his license, but _same difference_ ). And the girl he was head over heels in love with _was in his lap, wrapped in his arms, and breathing into his neck_. He was running lyrics through his mind trying to distract himself when she finally broke the silence between them.

"Luke?"

"Ah, yeah Jules?"

She lifted her head and met his eyes, her eyes holding a question he couldn't quite decipher.

"Jules?"

She just tilted her head and kissed him, her tongue swiping across his lips and seeking entry for the first time. He couldn't stop the small moan that escaped, as he readily opened his mouth and tangled his own tongue with hers. He _loved_ this girl. He never wanted to push her into _anything_ , but he hadn't quite counted on her making the first move forward to be so damn _hot,_ even though he probably should have. He broke the kiss sooner than he would have liked, but for good reason, bodily picking her up and moving her off his lap to sit next to him instead, panting a little.

Her face scrunched up in confusion and a tiny shadow of hurt, as she also tried to catch her breath. "L-luke?"

He dropped his head to her shoulder, his arms still around her. "I just need a second Jules."

"Wha- Oh. _Oh_."

"I know you're smiling. Stop it, it's not funny." He couldn't quite hide the amusement in his voice, though.

She giggled, then full out laughed. 

Luke lifted his head up, mock pouting at her, puppy eyes and all.

"Y-you don't _understand_!" Julie inhaled deeply, becoming serious, "I was just thinking about how I wished I could talk to my mom about this." She waved a hand between the two of them. "It seemed like you and me, _we_ , were kinda stuck, and I couldn't help but be a little unsure."

His jaw dropped, "How could you _not know_?! I'm- you- it's- I- _Julie_." He chuckled dryly to himself for a moment, one hand going up to wipe across his face in consternation. "Julie. I didn't want to push you, I wanted to let _you_ set the pace. But, I _never_ imagined you would think I didn't _want_ you, I _always_ want you." Luke cupped her face with one hand, "I promise to communicate more. I'm much better with lyrics than words (and I know lyrics are words, but you know what I mean), but I will work on my words for you. Julie. _T'es l'amour de ma vie_."

"What does that mean?" Her voice had dropped to a whisper, getting lost in his eyes and the _something_ that she had only caught glimpses of before.

Luke replied with an intimate smile, his words barely audible as he swayed towards her for another kiss, " _You are the love of my life._ "

\--------------------------------------------------------- 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have decided to combine Halloween and Julie's birthday. I have a short scene already written, with a *different* point-of-view and I'm so excited to get to it and see reactions.
> 
> Hope you liked the costumes Flynn and Carrie *want* for Luke and Julie.
> 
> I'm planning it to be Julie's 17th birthday, so I figured it was time to at least address the fact that they are *older teenagers*. Depending how long this fic keeps going they might *eventually* progress a *little* more, but it will probably be 'off screen'.


	29. Part Vingt-neuf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex and Ray talk a little. And some more about the party. This one is a little short.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I spent forever stuck partway through this chapter (okay it was last night and part of tonight). I actually wrote two Juke one-shot drabbles just trying to get over the writer's block (more about this at the end). 

  
Part Vingt-neuf

\----------------------------------------------------------------

Over the next few days everyone could see that Luke and Julie were just a little bit more at ease with each other. It's not that they hadn't been comfortable before, but once in awhile there had been moments that had just felt the tiniest bit _tense_.

Ray chose to believe it was because they had discussed something about Julie's mom, and/or her upcoming birthday, and just refused to think about it further. He wasn't an idiot. But, he had decided he trusted Julie, _and,_ maybe surprisingly, Luke. That didn't mean he wanted to think too hard about what may or may not have caused this new level of connection between them, so he flat out blocked it from his mind.

He had enough to think about, what with helping Carrie and Flynn convince Julie to go to the Halloween party they were planning at Carrie's house. They were going to make it a birthday party for Julie also, but that part was secret.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------

All his kids were all getting excited about Halloween the next weekend (even Julie was grudgingly starting to come around), and Ray was pleased when Alex came and asked him about what costumes he had worn, back when he was younger. 

"Well, let's see. I'm sure I was a pirate at least once. One time I went as Zorro. Oh, and Rose and I went as Superman and Wonder Woman to a party the year before Julie was born." Ray stopped, his eyes narrowing in thought. "Alex. Are you looking for ideas just for you, or for you _and_ Willie together? I can help with either, but I need to know which you're looking for?"

Alex blushed a little, and looked down bashfully, his voice quiet and a bit unsure. "Um, together, I guess? I just don't know what's popular now, and I at least want to have some ideas." He glanced around, then leaned in conspiratorially, "I want to fit in at the party Flynn and Carrie are planning."

'Ah.' Ray could understand that, the guys had asked him to help them run interference so they could practice with Bobby when Julie wasn't around. They were going to play some of the songs from Bobby's first album (as Trevor), the ones Luke had actually written. Luke had explained how Julie had told him about how important those songs were to her and her mom, and they were going to dedicate the performance to Rose as part of Julie's birthday present. "Are you looking for more cute or romantic themed, Alex?"

"I don't know. It's, I just." He blew out a long breath. "I'm not really used to how it's _okay_ now. My parents..." He trailed off and his eyes darted away, like he wasn't sure if it was all right for him to say anything more.

Ray turned and grabbed a glass, pouring himself some juice from the fridge (apple, Julie had banned his usual juice blend since Luke was allergic), and spoke in a purposefully casual tone, "They wouldn't get it?"

"N-no. They would _hate_ it." Alex fidgeted with a pen from the counter. "They didn't, like, _do_ anything when I told them, they were just quiet, and pretty much stopped speaking to me. Excluded me from family dinners, didn't ask where I was if I stayed out late for a band performance, that kinda thing. It was _incredibly_ obvious they wished I would just disappear. I think they had always suspected _something_ , they were always pushing me to do sports or more _guy stuff_. It just didn't really interest me. And once their fears were confirmed, they gave up on me."

"That must have hurt." Ray propped a hip against the counter, still not directly facing Alex, or attempting eye contact. He was mentally raging at the information, 'I would certainly have a few things to say if I ever met them. _Pendejos_. _Bastards_.' His thoughts fell into quite a few choice insults, in both Spanish and English, but Alex spoke again and he refocused.

"Yes, it did. Growing up I was _confused_ for awhile before I figured it out, and it was hard enough deciding to tell them. I think I knew they wouldn't take it very well." He paused for a weighted moment. "Luke was my first kiss."

An eyebrow hiked up at that. On second thought, though, Ray supposed it wasn't that surprising, Luke would do anything for his friends and there was something... well, yeah, Ray could see it. He gave a vague nod, hoping Alex would continue, he probably needed to get this out. 

"He was the first person I told, he said it was okay and it didn't matter, I was still his best friend. Reggie was the second person I told and he said the same thing." Alex let out a small laugh. "They both said they had kinda already known. And Bobby... I didn't tell him, I was going to, but he guessed before I could get up the courage. He came up after practice one day and told me it was cool, made a joke about it 'leaving more girls for him', patted my shoulder, and then just walked away. It was nice how he didn't make it a big deal."

"That's great, you were lucky to have such good friends. You _deserve_ good friends who support you." Ray turned and tilted his head at Alex, "So, I guess the question, when talking about the party, is what do _you_ want? Obviously you _know_ who you are, and you've gotten more comfortable with Willie while around us, but are _you_ okay with being obvious and open with things at the party? We'll all be behind you, and I'm sure Willie will want you to be comfortable, so what do _you_ want, Alex?"

A stunned expression crossed Alex's face, like he had never really fully considered what it _meant_ that it wasn't 1995 anymore, and he _could_ be more blatantly out if he wanted. That there were a lot more people than just Luke, Reggie, and Bobby, who were ready and willing to support him. The time at the mall in Canada with Willie had been fun, but it had felt a little like a dream, since they were so far away from home. This was going to be in front of people, people who were Julie's _friends_ , people who he would probably see again, _possibly frequently_.

Ray just patiently drank his apple juice, eyes idly wandering around the kitchen and waiting quietly for an answer.

"I-I think..." Alex took a deep breath, fighting the anxiety that was screaming in his head, "I want to do the romantic kind."

"Okay. Then we'll find it for you. Do you want to find a few ideas to run by Willie later, or would you like to go get him and we can all look some options up together?"

Alex thought for a moment, "I'll go get him."

"And I will get my laptop set up so we can do a search." 

Alex popped out of view, going to get Willie, and Ray shook his head, taking a few steps toward the table, and his laptop. He had been _sure_ Reggie would open up first, guess he lost that bet. This was good, though, every little bit the boys let him in, the more he could show them they were _safe_ with him.

Alex suddenly appeared again, right in front of Ray, who barely managed to bite back a yelp of surprise.

"Hey. I just want to say thanks. Luke said you were a good listener, and you really are." Alex wrapped his arms around Ray in a quick but strong hug, before pulling back and disappearing again.

' _Oh._ ' Ray stayed frozen in place for a moment, blinking against suddenly damp eyes. These boys deserved so much love and support, and he reaffirmed his vow to give it to them. 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------

So, that afternoon had Alex and Willie spending some time with Ray working on costume ideas, Luke working on a new song in the loft, and Reggie taking a nap.

\---------------------------

Meanwhile, at school, Julie was trying to fend off the _well-meaning_ but somewhat _irritating_ interference of Flynn and Carrie.

"C'mon Jules, it's the guys first Halloween back-uh, I mean here!" Flynn flinched at Julie's glare, mouthing sorry and glancing over to make sure Carrie hadn't caught the slip.

Carrie hadn't, she had a slightly sad look on her face, her eyes on Nick at his locker down the hall. 

"Carrie?" Julie was glad for the distraction.

Her head snapped around, "What?"

"Are you okay?" Flynn had an eyebrow raised and a knowing look on her face.

"I'm fine." 

Julie and Flynn just stared at her.

"Okay, fine, maybe I'm not _fine_ , but I'm okay. I'm going to invite him to the party so we can talk..." Her eyes lit up, "...Which is why you have to come and support me Julie!"

"Argh!" Julie groaned good-naturedly. "I didn't say I _wouldn't go_ , I just don't think I want to dress up!"

Flynn and Carrie turned to each other, communicating with a few exaggerated facial expressions, before squaring off shoulder to shoulder in front of Julie. 

"Your _dad_ is going to dress up, even though he's going to be spending most of the night hanging out with my dad (who is _also_ dressing up) in the den watching movies. Which is pretty nice of them, being willing to be there, but not exactly _there_. Do you really want to be the _only one_ without a costume?"

"Yeah, Julie. And our idea really is perfect, you _know_ Luke will fall over himself to do it if you ask, and we _even_ considered his sleeve allergy." Flynn smirked, she _knew_ how much Julie enjoyed Luke's arms.

" _Maybe_..."

Her two friends started to squeal in triumph, cutting off when Julie continued, " _But_ , I think I have a different costume idea."

"Oh."

"Are you sure?"

Julie narrowed her eyes at them, "Yes. Why are you so obsessed with all of this?"

Flynn looked down, hiding her panic at the suspicion in Julie's voice and mumbled, "Because I think you two would look really cute and I _like_ the Aladdin/Jasmine idea. Besides, your idea might just be something like 'band members' and that's _not_ a costume." 

"Huh. Okay. Also, ouch. I _guess_ I can consider the Disney thing, but I really think my idea is better. And it's _not_ just 'band members'." Her eyes sparkled with mischief, she was pretty sure Luke would like her idea more than the Disney characters. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof. This chapter was difficult. Alex decided it was his turn to talk to Ray, even though I originally thought Reggie would be first.
> 
> Alex's talk with Ray is fairly short and not too in-depth, though, because I am a straight white girl, and I think it would be presumptuous and, honestly, wrong, if I were to pretend for even a second that I could understand what a person coming out to their parents was like in the nineties. Or even now. I can have empathy, and be open to listening and trying to learn from people who do have those stories in order to become a better ally, but I can't write one of those stories. Also, I did allude a little to Alex/Luke, with a slight questioning of where Luke falls in terms of his sexuality, but most likely I'm not going to refer to that past this point, since this is a Juke, Willex, and family story primarily. I hope this makes sense?
> 
> Also, please give me ideas for Willex costumes, please. My head is so busy with ideas for the party (actually some Willex cuteness), so please. Also, see below.  
> 
> 
> So, uh, hey. Some of you may recall that I mentioned in my notes on Part 19 that I have a BUNCH of Christmas music?  
> Well.  
> Hello, eventual collection of *not sure how many* days of Christmas Song Juke Drabbles. (Not related to this story- and both that are written are complete AUs so far.)


	30. Part Trente

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We find out most of the costumes, and there's some angst at the end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I couldn't help myself, I was going to make the costumes more of a surprise, but it just didn't work that way, oh well.
> 
> Also, I kept trying to picture Willie and Alex in, well, any costumes. The ideas you all had were great, but nothing felt right. And then I remembered Willie's outfit at the HGC, and I decided he's not really a suit person. Thus, this happened. I thought Willie would enjoy the pun.

Part Trente

\--------------------------------------------------------

On Friday, Julie had pulled Luke out to the studio after school, he had been watching TV in the living room. Alex followed them out, and clapped his hands in happiness at Julie's idea. She gave Luke two options with her costume idea for him, black sleeveless, or short-sleeved black button-up, both with black dress pants. He said either would be fine, but when she showed him what her costume options would be to go with each, the look on his face for the first option told her everything she needed to know.

Luke was smiling, he knew this movie, Alex had made them watch it when they were younger. Glancing over he could see Alex grinning, but holding his opinion back for the moment.

"Huh, as much as you hate sleeves, I really thought you would cave so I'd be wearing the dress."

"Jules, you would look beautiful, but you're going to be beautiful in the other one, too. And that outfit looks more comfortable for you, I've seen you wear something similar before. There's going to be dancing and karaoke, pants seem like they make more sense."

Julie laughed, he was such a boy. He did have a point, though, and she was glad he wanted the more comfortable choice for her. Especially since that meant he was going with the sleeveless shirt. She _really liked_ the sleeveless shirts.

Alex couldn't wait to help them get their outfits together the next day. "You have to do your hair next weekend for the party, Luke, it's kinda iconic."

"Really? Do I _have_..." He caught a glimpse of Julie's face, and suddenly a memory floated through his mind, and he had some questions. 

"Alex, out please. I need to talk to Julie."

"Rude." Alex did as asked, though. He wanted to go check on Willie and Ray and see if they had made any progress, they were with Reggie and Carlos inside, _still_ trying to find the right couples' costume. Alex had needed a break, but after seeing the perfect costumes Julie had chosen he was ready to keep looking. They had been sorely disappointed by the lack of options on Google yesterday, Ray had sworn in Spanish, and muttered about how disappointing the stark lack of representation was, there just weren't many gay couples in mainstream movies and TV, and the costume options reflected that. Things were better, but this showed how far things still needed to go. 

\-------------------

"Julie. What is that look on your face?" Luke was amused.

"Uh. What look? I don't have a look." She stood up and moved slightly towards the door, trying to arrange her face into an expression of innocence, but it came out as more of a grimace.

"Hmmmm." Luke crossed his arms, lifting one hand to tap a finger on his lip as he circled her in the middle of the studio. "You know, that hairstyle actually looks a little familiar, and not from my memories of the movie."

Julie swallowed hard. 'I was embarrassed enough telling him the first time and I was _sure_ he had forgotten, damn it!'

"Might this perchance remind you of a certain _daydream_ , Jules?" His eyes were sparkling with suppressed laughter, and a grin played at the corner of his mouth.

'Screw it.' Julie would tell him anything, if it would keep that look of pure happiness on his face. "Fine, yes. This costume choice was slightly inspired by my daydream about you."

"The one I _dreamed_ , when I slept again for the first time?"

She ducked her head, cheeks hot, but unable to stop the soft, unfocused smile from spreading across her lips. She had let go of the weirdness of him dreaming something she had imagined, and couldn't help but love it now. It seemed like a sign of their deep connection.

" _Jules._ " His voice was soft and tender, the playfulness gone. "I love it."

She glanced up at him from under her lashes, "Really?"

He smiled, the one reserved just for her, and cupped her cheek, pressing his forehead to hers. " _I love it._ "

She beamed at him, her hands going to his chest for balance as she went up on her toes to press a sweet kiss on his lips. "Thank you. It was also one of my mom's favorite movies."

"You _know_ this means we have to sing the song for karaoke." He bit his lip in excitement, he was actually really looking forward to having the chance to sing some random songs for _fun_ , and a planned romantic duet with Julie was a huge bonus.

\-----------------------------------------------

Ray took Reggie and Carlos to get their costumes on Saturday, even if he was spending most of the party next weekend hanging out with Bobby, he had been told a costume was mandatory. No ideas had really come to mind, until Reggie had come to him, asking if Ray would help with his costume. As soon as he said who he wanted to be, Ray had thought of the perfect costume choice for himself, happy that he could show support to Reggie. 

Carlos had picked a throwback costume, he had convinced a couple boys from his baseball team to be 'Ghostbusters' with him, and they were having a sleepover at his friend's house the night of the party. The 'actual-but-not-exactly-anymore' ghosts had decided it was hilarious. Ray also had to laugh a little to himself, he never would have guessed this was how he, Julie, and Carlos would be spending Halloween this year.

He was grateful, though, that it wasn't going to be some sad night, trying to give Julie a happy birthday on his own. 

The other kids had gone off to get their stuff, Julie and Luke were at the mall piecing their outfits together from different stores as needed, and Alex and Willie were helping them. The two of them had finally decided on more simple costumes for this year, Willie wasn't really a 'get dressed up' kinda guy anyway, as least not in too fancy clothes. Alex did remember his outfit at the Club, and the suggestion of 'Men in Black' from Carlos the day before had proven his aversion. The look of horror on his face at the idea of complete _suits_ had made Ray, Alex, Reggie, and Carlos laugh a lot.

Julie and Luke had walked in at that point and asked what they were doing. Carlos told them, and Julie had nodded thoughtfully, before leaning over her dad at his laptop, and pulled up an ad for t-shirts with the words "He's my Boo." and opposite arrows on each. Everyone turned to stare at her, a huge grin blooming on Willie's face.

"You get me, Julie. Those are perfect!" 

It wasn't what Alex had been thinking of, but he couldn't help but enthusiastically agree, they _were_ perfect. Willie loving them too made it even better.

\-------------------------------------------------

Flynn and Carrie had gotten the decorations the weekend before, after the dinner. They had been a little worried when Julie had abruptly left with Luke, but they had talked to her at school the next day and _definitely_ noticed a difference in her. After some best friend nagging, she had finally admitted that there had been a slight step forward in her relationship with Luke, and she was _very_ happy about it. They agreed to leave it at that, knowing she would spill everything eventually, probably on the next girls' night.

This weekend they were working on _doing_ the decorating for the party, or at least some of it, directing the people Bobby had hired to do the big stuff. 

"So, what did you decide on Carrie? I know you were thinking about a few different options." Flynn paused in her application of window decals to look at her.

"Well, I wanted something at least somewhat comfortable, but I also wanted to wow Nick when I talk to him." She gave a small smirk, "I thought since there are rumors of a third movie _finally_ happening, I would go as Elle Woods."

Flynn laughed and nodded, "Oh, that's really good."

"What about you, Flynn?"

"I'm almost done making a 'Moana' costume. I had a dream where _everyone_ wore a Disney costume earlier last week, that's how I came up with Jasmine for Julie. I was Moana in the dream and honestly, I love it, it's going to be really cute."

Carrie stared at her, "That is going to be _amazing_ , and I know you making it is going to make it a thousand times better than store-bought."

"Thanks Carrie. This party is going to be so great."

\-------------------------------------------

The next week was spent making last minute adjustments to costumes, and a few almost-caught moments for the guys. They had had to sneak Bobby out a couple times, and had started to rely on Willie, as well as Ray, to run interference with Julie if rehearsal ran too long. After the second time, they had just started popping Bobby from his house and back, it was easier than hoping Julie wouldn't notice his car.

It was both strange and familiar to have Bobby playing alongside them again. It was good though, they were able to talk to him about things from their 'previous life', as it were. Also, he was able to catch them up on some more of everything that had happened since they died, he told them about new albums from their favorite bands, and new bands he knew they would like. The phones he had given them were even more useful once he showed them Spotify.

Luke was indifferent to the phone aside from two things, the music was one, and the other was Julie. They could text when she was between classes now, and he loved it. Every practice break was scheduled around her, just so he could check his phone and reply if she sent him a message. The guys just rolled their eyes and called him a sap, but they were glad he was happy, so it was all good-natured teasing.

\------------------------------------------

It was Friday night, the night before her 17th birthday, and Halloween, and Julie was staring out her bedroom window at the sky.

"Are you ready for the party tomorrow?" 

Julie turned, to see Luke leaning against her open door, arms crossed. She blinked as she processed the question, she had been lost in thought, and now his arms were distracting her. "Ye-yeah, sure. It's going to be fun." She attempted a smile, but it was forced.

He pushed off the door, one eyebrow raised, " _Right._ C'mon, I know there's something going on in your head. Talk to me Jules." He sat on her bed and patted the spot beside him, holding his arm up in invitation.

A fond smile replaced her fake one, and she climbed up and joined him, curling up against his chest. A quiet sniffle had him wrapping his other arm around her too. "I'm here, always. You never have to pretend you're fine if you aren't."

She nodded, not lifting her face, and with a voice thick with tears she whispered, "I just miss her. Sometimes it still hurts so much, and it's like I can't breathe. And then I have to cry for awhile."

"Then go ahead and cry." Luke hugged her close and took a deep breath, "I have a new song I can sing to you, if you want?"

Julie peeked up at him, eyes full of tears, but her lips were turned slightly up, "I would love that."

  
_'I can't unfeel your pain_  
_I can't undo what's done_  
_I can't send back the rain_  
_But if I could I would_  
_My love, my arms are open_

_So when you feel like you can't take another round of being broken_  
_My arms are open_  
_And when you're losing faith and every door around you keeps on closing_  
_My arms are open_

_I can't uncry your tears_  
_I can't rewind the time_  
_I can't unsay what's said_  
_In your crazy life_  
_My love, my arms are open_

_Ooh, and when you're cursing at the sky_  
_And thinking, "Lord, you must be joking"_  
_My arms are open_  
_And, and when you're looking in the mirror_  
_Thinking "Damn, my life is over"_  
_My arms are open_

_My arms are open_  
_My arms are open_  
_My arms are open_  
_My arms are open_

_So let me do to you_  
_What you've always done for me_  
_And let me be the ground_  
_Underneath your feet_

_I can't unfeel your pain_  
_I can't undo what's done_  
_I can't send back the rain_  
_But if I could I would_  
_My love, my arms are open, arms are open_

_So when you feel like you can't take another round of being broken_  
_My arms are open_  
_Oh, and when you're losing faith and every door around you keeps on closing_  
_My arms are open_

_My arms are open_  
_My arms are open_  
_My arms are open_  
_My arms are open_

_(My arms are open)_  
_I will be standing here_  
_I will be by your side_  
_(My arms are open)_  
_You'll see me loud and clear_  
_With my arms open wide_  
_(My arms are open)_  
_I will be standing here_  
_I will be by your side_  
_(My arms are open)_  
_You'll see me loud and clear_  
_With my arms open wide_

_My arms are open'_

Julie had softly cried herself to sleep by the time he was finished, and Luke looked up to very quiet applause from the still open door. Ray stood there, a few tears drying on his own cheeks. "That was _incredible_ Luke. Thank you for being there for my baby girl." 

Luke inhaled a little shakily, "Always, Ray."

"You're good here tonight Luke." Ray smiled at him and grasped the doorknob, stepping back and closing Julie's door as he left.

Julie had seemed a little off at dinner, and she had retreated to her room early. He had noticed the concerned looks Luke was shooting her all evening, and then the stairway once she left. When everyone had started to head off to bed he had caught Luke's arm and just pushed him gently towards the stairs, he knew Julie was more likely to open up to him. 

Ray was there for Julie, of course, and they had spoken more about her mom in the last few weeks than almost all the months before combined. But he knew that sometimes she still just needed to cry for a little while, sometimes he did too. For that, Luke was the person to be there for Julie, Ray was sure, and that new song? Yeah, he had been right to send Luke to her.

'Rose, she misses you tonight. So do I. It's her birthday tomorrow, and Flynn and Carrie have planned a big party. The boys have a few different surprises in store, as well. You'll love it. I like to think you're looking down, watching out for us. All I can say again is _thank you, mi amor,_ and _I miss you so much._ ' Ray went to bed and cried a little himself, it was going to be hard to watch Julie turn 17 tomorrow without Rose beside him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song is 'Arms Open' by The Script


	31. Part Trente et Un

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cute Juke. The beginning of the party.

Part Trente et Un

\----------------------------------------------------------

Luke woke up slowly the next morning. He was warm and comfortable, and the scent of Julie's shampoo was all around him. He blinked, seeing the top of her head, her face was buried in his chest and they were wrapped around each other. He just lay there quietly, breathing the moment in, remembering how they had gotten to this point.

When Ray had shown up in the doorway last night, Luke was sure he would be at least a little mad. He wasn't though, and that _'You're good here tonight Luke.'_ would stay with him for a long time. He respected the hell out of Ray, and, more importantly, Julie. Knowing that Ray knew that, and was completely accepting of him, was almost unbelievable and definitely a little overwhelming.

After Ray had left, Luke had managed to get the covers out from under he and Julie and maneuver the two of them down in the bed to lay flat. He had attempted to pull away from her only once, he thought he should get on top of the covers, that it would be better. But, she had made a little distressed noise in her sleep and her hands had gripped his shirt, holding him in place. How could he possibly have moved after _that_?

The sound of her steady breathing was lulling him back to sleep, but then he heard his phone buzz softly next to him, it had been in his back pocket, but it must have slid out during the night. He carefully lifted his arm and reached behind himself, feeling around for a minute before finally catching it in his hand. It was still early, only 9 am, and the message was from Ray.

_Ray:_ Luke, Reggie and I are making chocolate chip muffins for Julie's birthday breakfast. Can you keep her up there for another half hour or so? We want it to be a surprise.

_Luke:_ Of course! She's still asleep for now, so it shouldn't be too difficult, I just won't wake her up! :)

He set his phone back down behind him and carefully put his arm around Julie again, he would stay here forever if he could.

\------------------------------------------

All too soon his phone buzzed again. Luke wasn't really asleep, he had just been dozing slightly, enjoying the quiet and the feeling of Julie in his arms.

_Ray:_ Muffins are almost ready! Time to wake up Sleeping Beauty, Luke!

'Well, isn't that just a lovely idea?' Luke grinned to himself, shifting around a little, and brushing Julie's hair back so he could cup her chin and tip her head up. 

" _Jules_. Sweetheart, it's time to wake up." He gently nudged her nose with his own, before softly laying a quick kiss on her lips. "Happy Birthday, Julie." 

"Hmmmmmm." She hummed, her eyes slowly blinking open. They focused on him, glowing in adoration, and she broke into a huge smile.

'God, she's beautiful.' Luke's heart stuttered in his chest, "I love you."

Julie couldn't help but kiss him again after that, and there was a bit of a delay in heading downstairs.

Luke especially needed a little longer, just sitting in bed breathing, while Julie went to the bathroom, once they managed to focus on getting up.

\-------------------------------------------

When they made it downstairs, the muffins were cooling on the counter, and everyone was gathered, ready to wish Julie a Happy Birthday. Carlos ran to her first, throwing his arms around his sister, "Happy Birthday Julie!"

"Thanks Carlos!" She hugged him tight, he was really the sweetest little brother.

Ray stepped forward next, and they shared a long hug, him whispering in her ear. Both were a little teary-eyed when they pulled back, but still smiling. 

Julie hugged Alex, Willie, and Reggie, and then it was time to eat. They all dug in to the delicious, still warm, chocolate chip muffins, and discussed the plan for the party that night. 

\------------------------------------------

"All right guys! Are we set?" Ray was standing by the door, ready to drive them all over to the party. Carlos had been picked up by his friend Benny's mom, he and the rest of his 'Ghostbusters' were going trick-or-treating before the sleepover.

Julie couldn't help but snicker, it was hysterical to hear her dad's voice come out of the detailed Chewbacca mask, and don't get her started on the furry zip-up suit he was wearing.

"We're ready Ray!" Reggie was practically vibrating in excitement in his Han Solo costume. His dad would have _never_ dressed up with him, Ray was the _coolest_.

"We're ready Ray." Alex was shaking his head fondly at Reggie from where he stood holding hands with Willie. 

"Okay then! Let's go!" Ray tossed the car keys to Luke. "You're actually driving, I can't see enough in this mask."

Considering the toss had been way to Luke's left, and he had to lunge to grab the keys out of the air, Luke just nodded in agreement, his eyes wide.

\-----------------------------------------

The party was already filling up when they arrived. Carrie and Flynn had invited most of the music program and the Lacrosse team, letting everyone know that there would be no spiked punch or shenanigans, since both Bobby and Ray were going to be there. Carrie had also made it clear it was partly a birthday party for Julie, and she wanted her to have fun, so anyone trying to pull any stupid crap was going to be kicked out immediately. Carrie was determined this would go well, and that Julie would have a good time for her first birthday without her Mom. 

Flynn was backing her up, she also knew this was Carrie's way of making up for some of the mean things she had said. It was nice to have her back as a friend, and Flynn wasn't going to let anything mess it up again.

"Oh my god!" Carrie had loved the Aladdin/Jasmine idea from Flynn, but, "You look _amazing_ Julie! I never would have guessed it, but it's _perfect_!"

"That is _not_ just 'band members'. I'm sorry I doubted you Julie!" Flynn was blown away, their costumes were detailed and on point. Julie wore a white button up, knotted at her midriff, and high-rise long jean shorts. Her hair was also pinned up to create the illusion of it being the correct shorter length from the movie, bangs included. Luke had his hair styled pretty close to Johnny's in the movie, and was wearing black slacks and a black tank top. 

"I told you my idea was good!" Julie grinned at them, her hand wrapped around Luke's bicep. She had been glad he wanted the sleeveless, but she had somehow missed considering that it would be a _tight_ sleeveless tank top, and she couldn't stop mentally congratulating herself. She was _really_ enjoying the night already.

"Alex, Willie! You guys look great!"

"Reggie, and... oh my god!"

Flynn and Carrie broke into laughter at Ray, "That- that is the _best_!"

"You look awesome Mr. M! My dad didn't even _try_ compared to that!"

"Excuse me?! I am a _doctor_ , I've got a white coat and a stethoscope. Hey Ray, everyone. You all look great, and it's great to see you. Happy Birthday Julie!" Bobby gave her a hug, sharing a look with everyone over her head. "Would you be willing to loan me the guys for a few minutes Julie?"

"Uh, sure." Julie shrugged. 

"Perfect!" 

Luke dropped a quick kiss on her cheek, then followed Bobby, Ray, Alex, Willie, and Reggie into the living room where the party was getting started. 

"So, is there a DJ and then Karaoke, or the other way or what? You two have been pretty tight-lipped about the party plans." Julie raised an eyebrow at Flynn and Carrie in inquiry.

They exchanged a long glance, then Carrie stepped back towards the living room as Flynn responded to Julie. 

"We just wanted to make sure everything was going to go well. We know this year is a little different and we thought it should be special."

"What exactly does that mean?" Julie's eyes had narrowed and she stared at Flynn suspiciously.

A yell came from the living room, and Carrie spun around and grabbed Julie's arm, "They're ready Flynn!"

Flynn grabbed Julie's other arm and they pulled her into the living room and through the crowd, to stand right in front of the small stage that had been set up. She gasped, unsure why the guys were set up to play, they hadn't practiced anything for this with her.

"Wha..?"

Bobby- _Trevor_ stepped on stage from the right, his guitar slung around him, and spoke into what was obviously to be his microphone. 

"You are all here for an awesome Halloween party, planned by my amazing daughter, Carrie, and her friend Flynn. _But_. We are all also here for Carrie's friend Julie. It's her birthday, and her band came and asked me if I would join them in playing a few of my old songs as a tribute to her Mom, who, sadly, is not with us tonight in person, but is always out there looking out for her. And, because this is for you, Julie, I thought I would let your band take the lead. I'm just here as rhythm guitar for support tonight." 

He winked at her, and she smiled brightly back through her tears. He was giving her the music she and her mom had loved, but the way it was always meant to be, as _Luke's_ music. 

Her eyes found Luke's and he grinned at her as he introduced the first song, 'Long Weekend', and the boys began to play.

\------------------------------------------------------

They had played for almost an hour, all the songs Julie and her mom had loved, and then announced it would be a DJ for the next couple hours before karaoke started. Luke set his guitar in it's stand and hopped down off the front of the stage to meet her, Julie jumping into his arms and kissing him hard.

"That was _so_.. I just... _thank you_ Luke. I've been wishing to hear them from _you_ the way you wrote them ever since we talked." She whispered in his ear as he set her down, and Alex and Reggie came over for a band hug.

"What did you think, Julie? Were you surprised?" Reggie was bouncing a little, adrenaline from performing flowing through him.

"I was very surprised, but I loved it Reg. Thank you guys so much."

"We wanted to do something big for you, you're always there for us, Julie." Alex smiled at her, his hand caught by Willie, as he, Bobby and Ray walked up.

"Thank you." Julie looked around quickly, it was only the guys and Flynn, but she still lowered her voice, " _Bobby._ That was so nice. I loved it."

He nodded at her, "Rose was my friend, and she would have been disappointed in me, I hope she sees this as a sort of apology. Can't go back and change it, but I can do better from now on."

Julie gave him a quick hug. "I think you would've been forgiven after Canada and everything else, but still, thanks."

Ray wrapped an arm around Julie and asked, "Are you ready for cake mija? Then Bob- uh, Trevor and I are going to go find a movie to watch in the den and let all you kids have your fun." 

"Hey, where did Carrie go?" Alex asked. He had slightly gotten to know her since the dinner, and he really wanted to sit in on a Dirty Candi practice sometime.

"She went to take care of the next part of the night." Flynn had a smirk on her face, checking her phone she started counting down, "3, 2, 1...."

"Hello? Your attention please?" Carrie was now on stage, people moving behind her to clear the instruments and reset for the DJ and karaoke. "As we said it is my friend Julie's 17th birthday tonight and I would like you all to join me in wishing her a very Happy Birthday!" She started singing as a _huge_ cake was brought out by some of the catering staff, lit candles and everything.

_"Happy Birthday, dear Julie, Happy Birthday to YOU..."_

Julie felt Luke squeeze her hand as she leaned to blow out the candles, and she glanced at him, right by her side. 'I don't really know what to wish for, my life is pretty great right now.' 

She finally decided, 'I wish things stay this good, that everything keeps working out.' With a deep breath she blew out all the candles. Everyone applauded and the cake was taken away to be cut up and set out on the dessert table.

"Okay! The DJ is just finished setting up, so lets get this party started!" Carrie yelled happily, before dashing off the stage to give Julie a hug herself.

\--------------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next part may take a few days, but there also might be 2 more parts of the party? We'll see.


	32. Part Trente-deux

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More of the party.

Part Trente-deux

\------------------------------------------------

The guys headed over to the buffet, and Julie, Flynn and Carrie huddled together. 

"Carrie, thank you."

"Least I could do, Julie. And I've already got you and Luke signed up for the first karaoke song of the night."

"Really? I mean, I know he wants to do '(I've Had) The Time of My Life', but _first_?"

"Special request straight from the guy himself." Flynn told her, laughing. "He seems _really_ excited."

Carrie hooked their arms, "C'mon, let's go get some cake. I got the fancy red velvet with a middle layer of cream cheese frosting, as well as the top."

The three girls made their way to the dessert table, discussing other karaoke songs they and the others should do, giggling at the more silly ideas.

Luke came and found her not too much later, and they ended up standing near the wall, Julie telling him about who was who of her classmates, and a few stories about past birthday parties. People would occasionally stop and wish Julie 'Happy Birthday', but they were mostly in their own little world.

\------------------------------------------

Nick stood off to the side, sipping some lemonade, his eyes trained on the two people standing together across the room, near the wall. He was trying to sort through some things. 

Nick had originally broken up with Carrie after she had said those really mean things to Julie, but now they were obviously friends again, I mean, look at this party. 

After Julie started singing again and he and Carrie were over, they had partnered up in dance class, he had thought Julie might kinda like him, she was fun, and pretty, and they both played music. He figured it might be nice to date her, but Julie had turned him down, admitting she kinda liked someone else. He _had_ noticed she seemed to have some chemistry with the one guy in her hologram band, but he lived in another country. 

Nick figured if he gave it a little time, she'd decide that long-distance like that was too hard, and he might have a chance. He didn't mind that she said no, and if she had turned him down again he wouldn't have persisted, but there had been a little hint before that she might like him, so a second try seemed okay.

Now, though. He had apparently waited too long, not that it wasn't probably better this way, because it seemed the band had _moved here_ from Canada. (Hadn't Julie said they were from Sweden? Maybe that's actually the name of a city in Canada or something? Not that it really matters.) 

Nick frowned slightly at the sight of the two of them across the room, 'They look good together. Happy.' His eyes squinted a bit as a few people walked by them and paused to wish Julie 'Happy Birthday!'. 'They move together, she turns and he follows, it's subtle, but it's like they're in sync- or no, that's not quite it, they don't move _together_ but rather in a complimentary way, it's more....' 

He pondered for a long moment, still watching them. Then, the right words came to him, as he saw Luke smile and tuck one of Julie's curls behind her ear, making her giggle and catch his hand to lace their fingers. Nick's eyes went wide, 'It's like when I used to finally master a new chord on the guitar! The notes all fit together, and sound in perfect harmony! _That's_ exactly how I would describe it, they move in _harmony_ with each other!'

He smiled to himself, happy for her, and lifted his cup to take another sip of lemonade. When he found it empty, he turned and went in search of a refill, his thoughts turning to Carrie. Nick did miss her, they had been friends for awhile, and when she wasn't getting mad about Julie they had had a lot of fun together. Of course, he wasn't sure if he wanted to just get back together like nothing happened, but he _did_ want to at least be friends.

\--------------------------------

A little later Julie sat with Flynn and Carrie at one of the small tables, nibbling on some more snacks. Everyone else was mingling through the crowd, Julie even spotted Reggie chatting up Kayla, Carrie's friend from Dirty Candi. It was both a surprise, and not, that she looked just as happy to be talking to him as he did with her. Reggie was sweet, if a little _questionable_ sometimes, Julie thought fondly.

She poked Flynn, who was talking to Carrie about when she was going to talk to Nick. She had unexpectedly told them that she wasn't really sure about getting back together with him, but she did want to clear the air. She didn't want any misunderstandings, like the one she had with Flynn and Julie, he had been there for her a lot, and it would suck to lose him as a friend.

"Check it out."

"Wait, is that Kayla? I _knew_ it!"

Julie and Flynn looked at Carrie in confusion. 

"Oh, come on? He totally winked at her during your first performance right after the Spirit Rally? She was moping about him being from another country for weeks, even if she was trying to hide it from me. She almost lost her mind when I told her the guys had moved here. She's been begging me to introduce her ever since she found out the three of us made up." Carrie waved her hand, "But I was busy with the party, and the guys were busy rehearsing. I told her she could wait, that he'd be here, and she could flirt her little heart out tonight."

Flynn and Julie stared at her, before bursting out laughing. 

"Awww, I'm so happy for him!" Julie smiled, remembering Reggie's comment that day, _'Tell them I'm single!'_.

\-------------------------------  
In the midst of their girl talk, Julie hadn't really noticed that the DJ had announced the switch over to karaoke, at least not until she heard his voice behind her.

" _Nobody puts Baby in a corner._ " 

Julie turned to see Luke grinning at her, with his hand out for her to take, the DJ calling for them to come sing the first song. 

Her face lit up, she loved how gleeful he looked, the girls had been right about how excited he was for this.

_'Now I've had the time of my life_   
_No, I never felt like this before_   
_Yes I swear it's the truth_   
_And I owe it all to you_

_'Cause I've had the time of my life_   
_And I owe it all to you_

_I've been waiting for so long_   
_Now I've finally found someone to stand by me_   
_We saw the writing on the wall_   
_And we felt this magical fantasy_   
_Now with passion in our eyes_   
_There's no way we could disguise it secretly_   
_So we take each others hand_   
_'Cause we seem to understand the urgency_

_Just remember_   
_You're the one thing_   
_I can't get enough of_   
_So I'll tell you something_   
_This could be love...'_

"Wow. I'm even more impressed by the costume choice now." Flynn was awed, the song was actually quite appropriate for them.

Carrie cocked her head, "What do you mean?"

Luckily, Alex and Willie chose that moment to join them, dropping one of the karaoke song selection books in the middle of the table. 

"Will you help us choose a song?" Alex looked anxious, but excited.

"Of course!" Carrie pulled the book over and immediately started rifling through as if on a mission. "They better have it.." She muttered to herself.

Flynn raised an eyebrow, was she really going to...

"Yes! You two have to do this one!"

"'Strong'?" Willie asked.

Flynn snorted a laugh. Carrie had asked her all about Alex and Willie after the dinner. If everyone hadn't been so busy with the party, Alex would probably already be an honorary member of Dirty Candi. Flynn had told her Alex had seen some of her videos and really liked them (no need to tell her about his ghost dancing with them that one night...). But, really, Flynn knew Carrie had decided she wanted them to do this song last week, after she had sat in on an early band practice with her dad and heard Alex sing.

"Yes. It's sweet, and I want to hear it, please?" Carrie did have some decent puppy eyes when needed.

"Sure, why not? Right Hotdog?" Willie playfully bumped Alex's shoulder with his own and kissed him on the cheek. 

"Okay." Alex had gone slightly red, but his small smile was pleased.

\-----------------------------------

Julie and Luke had come back to the table to loud applause, squeezing in the last chair, Julie sitting on Luke's lap. 

"You two are so cute I almost want to puke." Flynn shook her head, amused.

"Thanks, Flynn." Luke exaggeratedly smacked a kiss on Julie's temple, making her giggle.

Flynn's comeback was interrupted by the DJ calling for Alex and Willie.

"Good luck!" Carrie was bouncing a little in her seat, she was looking forward to this. 

_'My hands, your hands_   
_Tied up like two ships_

_Drifting, weightless_   
_Waves try to break it_   
_I'd do anything to save it_   
_Why is it so hard to say it?_

_My heart, your heart_   
_Sit tight like book ends_

_Pages between us_   
_Written with no end_   
_So many words we're not saying_   
_Don't wanna wait 'til it's gone_   
_You make me strong_

_I'm sorry if I say, "I need you"_   
_But I don't care,_   
_I'm not scared of love_   
_'Cause when I'm not with you I'm weaker_   
_Is that so wrong?_   
_Is it so wrong_   
_That you make me strong?_

_Think of how much_   
_Love that's been wasted...'_

Alex was a mess inside by the second verse, but he managed to keep it together. Luke exchanged a worried look with Julie, she stood up and pointed him over to Reggie, the boys would need to check on Alex after this, they knew he still _was_ a little scared.

"Come with me." Luke caught Reggie by his vest. "Sorry, I swear I'll bring him back shortly."

"Uh, okay." Kayla looked crestfallen.

"I will _definitely_ be back as soon as I can!" Reggie called as Luke dragged him away, and she perked up, feeling better.

"Where are we going?"

Luke just nodded at Alex, finishing up on stage with Willie (who was also looking concerned, but trying to hide it).

_'I'm sorry if I say, "I need you"_   
_But I don't care,_   
_I'm not scared of love_   
_'Cause when I'm not with you I'm weaker_   
_Is that so wrong?_   
_Is it so wrong_   
_That you make me strong...'_

Reggie caught the last chorus repeat, "Oh, dear."

"Yeah."

They converged on the side of the stage, helping Alex and Willie down and directing them off into a empty side hallway. 

Willie hovered apprehensively, "I'm sorry, I didn't know the song!"

Reggie was holding Alex's shoulders, face to face, breathing slow and deep, encouraging Alex to mirror him.

"You couldn't have known, Willie. Neither could he. Or Carrie. Even Flynn wouldn't have known enough to stop it." Luke put an arm around Willie, "He'll be fine. I think it just hit a little too close to home. We'll get him fixed up in no time, don't worry."

"That's it, okay, _good_ Alex. Are you back with us now?"

Alex blinked, his eyes finally focusing on Reggie, inhaling a long ragged breath, "Y-yeah, I'm back."

"I'm _so_ sorry Hotdog."

"It-it's okay, you didn't know the song either."

Luke and Willie shared a short laugh. 

"Hey, why don't you two go see what movie Ray and Bobby are watching? Take a little time away from the crowd?" Luke raised his eyebrows at Willie.

"Right, cool. That sounds good, I could use a break. Alex?"

"I know what you guys are doing." He shook his head at them, "But I do appreciate it. A break sounds really good." 

Willie held out his hand, and with quick hugs from Luke and Reggie, Alex grabbed it and followed Willie down the hall to the den.

\--------------------------------------

Reggie threw an arm around Luke's shoulders, "He picked a good ghost, didn't he?"

Luke sighed, "Yeah. Let's get back to the party Reg." 

They turned to go, Luke silently glancing back, 'He picked a _great guy_ , I'm so happy for him.'

Before Reggie slipped away to go find Kayla again, Luke pointed out the table where Julie was, in case they wanted to come sit later. 

Then Luke paused, pulling his phone out.

_Luke:_ Hey Ray, try to talk to Alex a little, he had a bad minute and could probably use a hug.

_Ray:_ Got it, thanks for letting me know. You're a great friend Luke.

Luke couldn't help the smile that stretched across his face at that. Ray had quickly become someone to rely on, and Luke was just _so_ grateful.

\-------------------------------------

When he got back to the table, Julie stood immediately, reaching for him and gesturing him to sit, dropping into his lap as soon as he did. 

"Is he okay?" She whispered in his ear, her arms going around his neck to hold him close.

He tucked his face into her hair for a short moment, then replied, "Yeah, we helped him, and I sent him and Willie to the den to get away from the crowd for a bit." He nuzzled her cheek and kissed his way to her ear, "I texted your dad that something happened, he'll take care of him."

Julie involuntarily shivered, this was a serious conversation, he should not be allowed to affect her like this.

"Are you cold?" His voice was concerned.

"No, I just maybe need some air, can we go outside?"

"Anything you want, Jules."

She ducked her face to hide her smile, what she really _wanted_ was to get him alone for a few minutes.

\------------------------------------  
"We'll be right back."

Flynn gave her a _look_ , "Okay Julie, but don't take too long, Carrie and I are looking for a song we want to sing with you."

She blushed, glad Carrie was absorbed in the song book, and just took Luke's hand, leading him to the doors out to the deck. 

"Oh, it's actually kinda chilly out here, we should have grabbed you a sweatsh-mmph..."

A long moment later...

" _Oh._ "

Julie giggled, "Yeah."

And then there wasn't any talking at all for awhile.

\----------------------------------

"Julie!" Carrie was waving her and Luke back to the table enthusiastically. "We found a song, and, um, yikes, what is going on with your hair?"

Julie and Luke's eyes widened and she looked at him in exasperation, her hands frantically reaching up to feel that half of the bobby pins that had been keeping it up so it appeared shorter had disappeared.

He winced, "Sorry."

Carrie's glance bounced between them for a second, before a sly smile spread across her face. " _I see._ Well, Julie, let's go get you fixed up. Flynn is putting us on the list. As I started to say, we found a song for the three of us to sing." 

Julie mock glared at Luke as Carrie led her away. 

He just shrugged, crinkling his nose and mouthing to her, 'It was _your_ idea!'

She couldn't help but laugh, he was right.

\-------------------------------

Carrie had called Flynn over as they went to the bathroom to fix Julie's hair, she joined them from the side of the stage where she had been signing them up.

"Holy... Girl what _happened_?"

Barely able to get the words out through her snickers Carrie enlightened Flynn, " _Luke_ happened."

"Ohhh, wow, you really _went outside_ , huh?"

Julie groaned, burying her face in her hands, but was unable to completely hide her happy smile.

"Well." _*Giggle*_ "I guess we better get you presentable." _*Chuckle*_

"Julie." _*Snicker*_ "Are his hands as talented _not_ with a guitar?" 

They went into full body laughter, Flynn and Carrie both grasping the bathroom counter, and each other, trying to hold themselves up.

"You guys suck." Julie crossed her arms and attempted to pout, but a dreamy look kept breaking through.

_*Gasp*_ "We'll stop. We'll stop." _*Giggle*_

Flynn cleared her throat, laughter still coating her voice, "We should probably just take all the pins out, there's no salvaging this."

_*Cough*_ "Yeah, it's done for." _Pause._ "Kinda like Julie's self-control apparently."

_*Peals of laughter.*_

\---------------------------------

  
By the time they got Julie's hair figured out (once they stopped laughing), their table was now two tables. Reggie and Kayla had joined Luke, and Alex and Willie were back from the den. They had obviously commandeered the next table over and moved them together. 

"Hey. Julie, why did you take your hair down?" Alex looked at her, puzzled.

Luke turned bright red, and Julie just face-palmed, as Carrie and Flynn began almost crying with laughter all over again.

"What did I say?"

Luckily, the DJ called the girls up to sing, saving Julie from any explanations.

"What song did you pick?" 

"One that we're all going to mean from now on." Flynn gave Carrie a quick side hug as the music started.

_'When the daylight's gone_   
_And you're on your own_   
_And you need a friend_   
_Just to be around_

_I will comfort you_   
_I will take your hand_   
_And I'll pull you through_   
_I will understand_

_And you know that?_   
_I'll be at your side_   
_There's no need to worry_   
_Together we'll survive_   
_Through the haste and hurry_   
_I'll be at your side_   
_When you feel like you're alone_   
_And you've nowhere to turn_   
_I'll be at your side_

_If life's standing still_   
_And your soul's confused_   
_And you cannot find_   
_What road to choose_

_If you make mistakes (make mistakes)_   
_You won't let me down (let me down)_   
_I will still believe (still believe)_   
_I won't turn around_

_And you know that?_   
_I'll be at your side_   
_There's no need to worry_   
_Together we'll survive_   
_Through the haste and hurry_   
_I'll be at your side_   
_If you feel like you're alone (feel like you...)_   
_And you've nowhere to turn_

_(Side?_   
_I'll be at your side_   
_(I'll be, I'll be at your side)_   
_I'll be at your side_   
_(I'll be, I'll be at your side)_   
_(I'll be at your side)_

_I'll be at your side_   
_There's no need to worry_   
_Together we'll survive_   
_Through the haste and hurry_   
_I'll be at your side_   
_If you feel like you're alone (feel like you...)_   
_You've got someone to go (somewhere to go...)_   
_'Cos I'm at your side'_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So, I guess the costumes were a little confusing, that was on me, this chapter was going to go up with the last one, but it wasn't done. So, yeah. I think they're pretty obvious now, I hope. There will still be more to the party, I wasn't going to post until I finished, but this felt like a good place to split it up. Um, yeah. Ta da?
> 
> Songs used:  
> (I've Had) The Time of My Life - Jennifer Warnes & Bill Medley  
> Strong - One Direction  
> At Your Side - The Corrs


	33. Part Trente-trois

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The party ends, Luke gives Julie her present.

Part Trente-trois

\------------------------------------------

The party was starting to wind down, and Carrie had finally managed to talk to Nick. It seemed they were on the same page, so that was good. 

"He took it well?" Flynn asked Carrie with concern.

She nodded, "Yeah. He said he felt the same way, he doesn't want to lose our friendship. I'm glad I got to talk to him and clear the air."

"That's wonderful Carrie." Julie reached out and squeezed her hand.

Their conversation was interrupted by the DJ calling for Alex and Carrie to come sing their karaoke song. 

Carrie hadn't really known what had happened with Alex in the last song, but it had obviously upset him and once he and Willie had rejoined the the table, she had quietly apologized. Then she asked Alex if she could sing something silly and fun with him to make up for it. He told her it wasn't her fault and he would love to sing with her. She was careful to consult with him this time, but in the end she picked the song, showing him the lyrics on her phone. It wasn't a duet, but it was fun.

_"Crazy_   
_Oh_   
_Oh_

_Baby, I'm so into you_   
_You got that something, what can I do?_   
_Baby, you spin me around, oh_   
_The earth is moving, but I can't feel the ground_   
_Every time you look at me_   
_My heart is jumping, it's easy to see_

_You drive me crazy, I just can't sleep_   
_I'm so excited, I'm in too deep_   
_Whoa oh oh, crazy, but it feels alright_   
_Baby, thinking of you keeps me up all night..."_

\---------------

Julie leaned back into Luke's chest, "I'm really glad you two threw this party, Flynn. It's so much fun."

"I'm so happy you're happy, bestie." They shared a meaningful smile, Flynn turning to ask Reggie and Kayla if they were ready to sing, since they were up next.

"Yeah! I'm excited, Kayla says it's good!"

"I'm not sure how he managed to escape hearing this one, but I think it will be cute," she blushed and pecked Reggie on the cheek, "just like you, Reg."

He responded with a smitten smile, and slipped his hand into hers on the table with a affectionate squeeze.

Carrie and Alex arrived back at the the table just in time for this. Alex sitting down and being tugged into Willie's arms to cuddle, and Carrie shaking her head and laughing as she reclaimed her own seat.

"I told you," she said in a loud stage whisper to Flynn and Julie, "flirting her little heart out."

Both Reggie and Kayla turned bright red as they got up, walking to the stage. 

  
_"Livin' in my own world_   
_Didn't understand_   
_That anything can happen_   
_When you take a chance_

_I never believed in_   
_What I couldn't see_   
_I never opened my heart, oh_   
_To all the possibilities, ooh_

_I know_

_That something has changed_

_Never felt this way_

_And right here tonight_

_This could be the start of something new_

_It feels so right_

_To be here with you, oh_   
_And now, lookin' in your eyes_

_I feel in my heart (Feel in my heart)_

_The start of something new..."_

Julie, Carrie, and Flynn were having trouble not singing along, all of them mumble-singing under their breath.

Luke's lips were almost close enough to brush Julie's ear as he asked her, "Jules, what is this song?"

She turned to him, and her face lit up, "Oh, we're _going_ to have to have a movie night soon! I can't wait to show you all _three_ movies!"

Luke raised an eyebrow, not sure about the almost manic look in her eyes, "Uh, why do I feel like I should regret asking?"

Julie grinned, "Because you probably should."

He sighed, laying his head on her shoulder, "Well, I _guess_ it's worth it if we get to cuddle."

She pulled his arms tighter around her middle, "There will _definitely_ be cuddling."

\------------------------

Eventually the party had to come to an end, people heading home, getting picked up or catching rides with friends.

Flynn, Julie and they guys all offered to help Carrie clean up, but Ray and Bobby had finished their last movie and come out of the den.

"Don't worry about it kids," said Bobby, "I've got people here for that." Sure enough, the catering staff were already sweeping the room with trash bags, gathering empty cup and plates. "And they're going to get a big bonus, so it's all good."

"Thanks, Trevor," the kids chorused (they were working on a plan for an organic way for him to go back to 'Bobby' in public).

"Yeah, thanks Daddy." Carrie gave him a big hug.

Ray yawned, "Should we maybe get home, guys? I'm certainly ready to sleep."

Julie and the boys all nodded in agreement.

"I'll call you tomorrow Julie," Flynn gave her one last hug, she was staying over at Carrie's that night.

"Okay, Flynn, I'll talk to you then."

Ray handed the keys to Luke again, and everyone climbed in the SUV to go home.

\------------------------

"So, did you get Kayla's number Reggie?" Alex asked him from the third row of seats, his voice teasing.

"Yes, as a matter of fact I did, thank you very much," Reggie was trying to be smug, but it mostly came out giddy.

"She seemed really nice, way to go bro," Willie gave him a fist bump from behind, he was also sitting in the far back.

"Yeah, I'm still totally going to tease you, but I'm happy for you Reg." Alex patted his shoulder.

Julie, sitting next to Reggie in the middle row, was already falling asleep, but managed, "Happy for ya, Reg."

Ray just smiled to himself, he would ask Reggie about it tomorrow, he had mentioned wanting to meet Carrie's friend a couple times in passing, but it seemed like they had really clicked tonight.

\---------------------

When they arrived back at the Molina house, everyone was quiet getting out of the car, since Julie was completely asleep by then.

"Do you need any help getting her inside Luke?" Ray had carefully held the car door and the two of them had somehow maneuvered Julie out of the SUV, and into Luke's arms, without much more than a few mumbles that sounded vaguely annoyed and half-hearted, mostly asleep, participation from the girl.

"Nah, I got her Ray, as long as you've got the front door."

"Of course."

\-------------------

Luke was stepping into Julie's room to settle her in her bed, when Ray touched his shoulder, "Why don't you stay with her again tonight? I know you still haven't given her the birthday present you bought in Canada."

He froze, and blinking back the sudden wetness in his eyes, Luke nodded at Ray, "I-" his voice broke a little, "Ray, I don't know how to tell you how much it means to me-"

"You don't have to." Ray lifted his hand and cupped Luke's cheek for a moment, "I know how you feel about her. I trust you, Luke." He gave Luke a smile and walked down the hall to his room, calling a soft, "Goodnight!" as he shut his door.

Luke stood there a minute longer, awestruck. Then, shaking his head, he adjusted Julie slightly in his arms and moved into her room, gently closing the door behind him with one foot.

He lay her down, and stood back. She looked so peaceful, no worries furrowing her brow as she slumbered. Luke knew he should wake her up though, she would be uncomfortable in those jean shorts. He looked down at himself, come to think of it, his dress pants would not be fun to sleep in either. He sent thanks to the universe he still had the perk of teleporting, and popped away to the studio to grab some sweatpants. 

  
\-----------------------

  
"Hey, it was a good night, huh?" Alex asked.

Reggie was already snoring in the loft, and Willie just sleepily watched the conversation from his bed. 

Luke quickly shucked off his pants and slid on some comfortable black sweats, then switched his top for a clean, soft, gray t-shirt. "Yeah. And, uh, I'm gonna stay with Julie again tonight." 

Alex raised a brow, " _Really?"_

"Shut up man," there wasn't really any heat to his retort, "it's her first Halloween and _birthday_ without her Mom, you know that." Luke looked down and mumbled, "And Ray said I could."

Alex's eyes went wide, "Wow. I mean, I knew he seemed fine with you being with her this morning, but wow."

"Yeah. He's a really good guy."

It was Alex's turn to look away, "I know." He looked back at Luke, "We talked. At the party, in the den. It- it was nice. I _actually_ get it now." 

Luke smiled at him, "That's great Alex." He picked up the gift bag he had hidden behind the couch, popping back to Julie's room with a quiet, "Good night."

  
\------------------------------

  
Julie stirred when he reappeared, sleepily pushing up on one elbow, "Luke? When did we get home? Are you staying with me tonight?"

"Um, if that's okay?" He bit his lip and ducked his head, "I still haven't given you your present."

"I thought it was the mini concert earlier? Your songs?"

His hand went to rub the back of his neck, and he lifted the gift bag he had in one hand. "No. I bought it in Canada, I saw it and thought of you. I, um, I really hope you like it."

Julie's face glowed with surprise and anticipation, she sat up completely, and made a 'gimme' gesture with her fingers.

Luke handed her the bag and sat next to her, his fingers twisting together nervously.

Julie gleefully pulled the tissue paper out, reaching into the bag and extracting the jewelry box at the bottom. Her eyes widened as she opened it, the gold bracelet gleaming in the sliver of moonlight peeking through the curtains across her windows.

She drew in a sharp breath, "Luke, it's _so_ pretty." She looked closer as she lifted it out of the box, "Oh, a music note, and a heart, wait... _PERFECT HARMONY_ , and _J &L_," her voice cracked at the inscriptions on each side of the heart, tears gathering. " _Luke._ "

His smile was a little uncertain, he didn't mean to make her cry.

"Will you help me put it on?"

"Of- of course." Luke took the bracelet and fastened it around the left wrist she held out to him, infinitely relieved that she liked it.

As soon as he was done, she threw her arms around his neck and yanked him into a tight hug. "I love you, Luke."

He relaxed in her embrace, holding her close, "I love you too, Jules."

They stayed in place for a long moment, then Julie tilted her head back to meet his eyes, "You changed into comfy clothes, I need to do that. I'll be right back."

She got up and gathered her pajamas, making a fast trip to the bathroom to change and wash her face. Luke was curled up in her bed when she got back, eyes shut and obviously half-asleep already. She couldn't help but melt a little, glancing at the bracelet on her wrist. What she had confessed to her Mom in her head the night of the dinner at Bobby's was mostly the truth, that 'she was pretty sure she was going to spend forever with him.' The truth now, though, was that she wasn't just pretty sure, she was _sure_.   
  
Julie tip-toed over and crawled into bed next to him, he immediately roused enough to wrap his arms around her and pull her into his chest, murmuring her name. She snuggled close, feeling safe and loved. Despite the acute ache at the absence of her Mom, this had been a wonderful birthday.  
\-------------------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, confession. I was listening to music the other day while I worked and a song came on that made me go, 'Oh, this would be cute for Juke. Maybe a one-shot where...' 
> 
> Suddenly me out loud: Holy shit, Luke still hasn't given Julie the bracelet!
> 
> I had to laugh at myself, that was basically the whole reason I made Halloween be Julie's birthday, so he could give it to her. So, yeah. This chapter was written in pieces, and I meant to have it up earlier today. But it was a rough week, and I slept really late.
> 
> Let me know what you think! I'm going to be working on my 'Christmas Jukebox' one-shots a little more. I already have 7 done, but 2 really need to be re-written, or at lease heavily edited. 
> 
> Oh, also, I posted my Jukebox Playlist on my Tumblr (jackoneillistheman), it's what's usually playing when I write this story.


	34. Part Trente-quatre

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Soft Juke. Reggie and Ray talk a little.

Part Trente-quatre

\------------------------------------

Julie woke to the sound of Luke singing softly, his guitar on his lap, alternating strumming chords and scribbling in his song journal. He was facing the end of the bed and didn't notice her waking up right away.

She caught a few of the words and just lay as still as possible so as not to interrupt him.

  
_"And it's clear to me now_  
_I found a place, somewhere to fall_  
_Somewhere that I can belong_  
_When I see you I see home"_

  
Luke bit his lip, crossing out some chords and re-writing. Then, he must have felt her gaze, and his head turned, a tender, loving smile on his lips, "You're awake."

"Yeah. That was beautiful, Luke," her voice was a quiet whisper, not wanting to disrupt the tranquillity around them. It was obviously still very early in the morning, the sun barely peeking over the horizon, based on the muted rays slipping through the edges of the curtains covering her windows.

"Thanks. I just was thinking about how, well," he paused and ran a hand through his hair, "can I play it from the beginning?"

"Always, Luke. I love your songs," Julie sat up and leaned over to kiss his cheek, and then lay her head on his shoulder, loosely holding his left bicep with her hands, so he would still be free to play his guitar. 

He pressed a kiss to her head, and trailed his fingers across the strings.

  
_"Well, for years now, I feel I've been out travelin'_  
_No road, no way, no place to navigate_  
_Just lost in the wind before I even began to try_

_That all has a strange way of changin'_  
_In a moment like this with you, baby_  
_It's like findin' what I didn't know I was lookin' for_

_And that storm I fight_  
_It gets still inside_

_And it's clear to me now_  
_I found a place, somewhere to fall_  
_Somewhere that I can belong_  
_When I see you I see home_

_Girl, is it me, but ain't the stars aligned?_  
_Is it my imagination or are they a little more bright now?_  
_Yes, just a little more light now?_

_'Cause I can be a man depended on_  
_I can be somebody's somebody and home to someone_  
_And isn't that such a nice thought to walk with?_

_And I can feel that smile_  
_That I ain't seen in a while_

_And it's clear to me now_  
_I found a place, somewhere to fall_  
_Somewhere that I call my own_  
_When I see you I see home_

_Let the night get cold and let the cold winds blow_  
_And let you and I replay a song my own_

_'Cause it's clear to me now_  
_I found a place, somewhere to fall_  
_Somewhere that I call my own_  
_When I see you I see home_  
_And it's clear to me now_  
_I found a place, somewhere to fall_  
_Somewhere that I call my own_  
_When I see you I see home_

_I see home"_

  
"It's still just acoustic, I haven't written anything but the guitar part." Luke set his guitar aside as he spoke, scooting up on the bed and pulling Julie fully into an embrace. One arm holding her close, and one stroking through her hair as she snuggled into his chest.

"I don't think you need anything more," Julie lifted her head and met his eyes.

Time stretched in the silence between them, before they both leaned in and their lips connected. They traded gentle kisses as the sun rose, just enjoying the serenity of the early morning.

Slowly they slid down in Julie's bed, and the kisses turned softer, shorter, and shifted into cuddling, and holding each other close. 

Luke was breathing deeply, being this entwined with Julie was intense, but he loved it. He knew she was it for him, and he didn't feel the need to push, they would get there when it was right. For now, holding her like this was enough (although he wouldn't deny he might need a cold shower before breakfast later). They slowly drifted back to sleep, it was way too early to be awake for the day.

\------------------------------------------------

Much, much later, everyone had gotten up and they were all laying around the living room, enjoying the lazy Sunday afternoon. Alex and Willie were cuddled on one end of the couch, Willie chatting with Carlos, who was sitting on the floor. They were actually watching and paying attention to " _Chopped_ ," the others not so much, although Alex was at least somewhat tuned into their conversation and making a stray comment now and then.

Julie and Luke were in what had become their regular position on the loveseat, Luke's arms wrapped around her and occasionally whispering, Julie with a pen and Luke's song journal in her lap. Sometimes humming along to his words and recording them on the page, or nodding as he hummed and she wrote her own words down.

Reggie was at the far end of the couch, hunched over his phone, he had gotten a late 'Good morning!' text from Kayla and they had been having an intermittent conversation for most of the day. But, he didn't really know what to say. He liked her, obviously, it was just he didn't actually have a lot of experience with relationships.

Reggie's parents had fought, a lot, even when he was little there was arguing. He had never really seen an actual, _good_ relationship. Underneath everything Luke's parents were kinda a mess, and Alex's, well, Reggie didn't know them very well, but they couldn't accept Alex so forget them. As much as he went through the motions, winking and flirting with girls, the truth was he wasn't so smooth when one of them flirted back.

Being at the party last night had at least given them some topics of conversation, he and Kayla had talked about Dirty Candi, he had talked about playing bass, some things about their friends, Carrie for her, Julie for him. It had been okay, aside from the slight stress of keeping the 'I was actually born a long time ago, but then I died and came back as a ghost, but now I'm pretty much alive again' secret.

However, texting was _not_ easy, especially for a (not-quite-anymore) ghost who had not had a cell phone until a couple weeks ago. Every response to her felt like a test question, and he agonized over each one. 

'Should I put a smiley face at the end? The one with teeth or without? Wait, no teeth, stupid Alex, I swear, 'Crooked Teeth is _not_ about me! Argh. Do I sound stupid? Will the joke make sense? Why don't people like to talk on the phone anymore? Not that _I_ want to talk on the phone, I'd be stammering like an idiot.'

"Hey, Reggie?" Ray called to him from the kitchen, where he was getting together the ingredients for tacos that night.

Reggie popped up, any excuse to get out of his own head, "Do you need help with dinner, Ray?" He mentally cringed at the slight hopeful tone of his voice, he was working on not being too clingy with Ray, he didn't want to annoy him. His dad had always gotten sick of Reggie hanging around him.

"Yeah, Reggie, there's a lot of cutting up ingredients to do, and I know you're great at that."

His cheeks slightly dusted pink from the compliment, Reggie walked into the kitchen to join Ray, "Um, thanks."

Ray's smile dropped a bit at the uncertain response, he hadn't managed to talk to Reggie much about his parents, but that was yet another red flag. "Reggie," he started quietly, "did you ever cook with your parents?"

With a poorly concealed physical flinch, Reggie just shook his head no, and set about chopping up the lettuce Ray had laid out.

A deep sigh escaped Ray, his heart breaking for the sweet boy he had become so attached to, "They missed out then. You're an amazing cook, and I can't tell you how happy it makes me to share the kitchen with you to make food."

There was a pause, then a soft sniffle, and Reggie's arm went up to wipe his eyes with the sleeve of his flannel. 

"Oh, _mijo_ ," Ray glanced over to make sure everyone else was still occupied in the living room and stepped up next to Reggie. He carefully took the knife from his hand, setting it on the counter, and told him to leave the lettuce. Wrapping an arm around Reggie's shoulders, he tugged him around and opened the kitchen door, maneuvering them both outside for some privacy. 

Once the door was safely closed, Ray pulled Reggie into a close, full hug. The boy stayed stiff for a short breath and then pretty much collapsed into mostly silent sobs, grasping onto Ray like he was the only thing holding him together. Ray could feel his own eyes fill with tears, how had all these boys had the worst luck with parents when they only deserved the best? It truly wasn't fair. 

'Well, I can't change what was, but again I sure as hell am going to do my best to give them everything they didn't have before,' Ray stroked Reggie's hair, the way he did when Carlos was upset. Dinner could wait, this was much more important.

Eventually the shuddering subsided, and Ray took the chance to speak, "Reggie? Do you want to talk about it?"

Reggie shook his head, still pressed against Ray's chest, before suddenly switching to nodding.

"I-I just..." an almost audible hard swallow, "I don't really know what it feels like."

"What what feels like, mijo?"

"A happy _family_ ," he lifted his head just enough to catch Ray's eyes for a split second before looking away, "You guys are the closet I've ever seen."

Ray squeezed him tighter for a moment, "Hey, that's not quite true. You and Alex, and Luke, even Bobby a little, you guys look like a pretty happy family to me. A family doesn't have to be blood. Sometimes blood family isn't right, sometimes you have to find and create your family. And that doesn't make them any less family, in fact, it almost makes them _more_ , because you _chose_ them, and they chose _you_. That family can always get bigger, too. Me and Julie, Carlos, even Flynn and Carrie, we're all _choosing_ to be part of your family, and I hope you're choosing us?"

Reggie had looked back part way through Ray's speech, eyes glistening and an awed look of realization and happiness dawning, " _Really?_ You- you mean it?"

"Of course. You're stuck with us now," Ray grinned at him, tousling his hair with one hand. "Also, based on the way your phone keeps lighting up, I think there's someone else who would also like to be there for you too?"

At that Reggie turned bright red, stammering, "Uh, well, I don't... she's just, I mean..."

"Reg, it's okay. Just be yourself and be her friend first, things will fall into place as they're meant to, and you can always come talk to me. Or Julie, or Alex, or Luke, or anyone, you know that, right? About _anything_?"

Burying his face in Ray's chest again and hugging him tight, Reggie replied, his voice muffled, but pleased, "Yeah, thank you."

Ray gave a light laugh, "Good. You ready to go make some amazing tacos?"

Reggie stepped out of Ray's arms, wiping his face on his sleeves to clear the remains of his tears, "Yes. Let's go."

They went back inside and settled in to cook, Reggie relaxed and feeling more secure and at peace than he had in ages. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song is the live version of "I See Home" by Tyler Hilton
> 
> Hi all, I know it's been a hot minute since I updated. I just ended up in a bit of a creative hole. I hope this short chapter works to say I haven't forgotten this fic and I will be continuing. I took Monday off work, and I'm hoping it will help reboot my brain a little. Also, I've been trying to do some writing here and there on those Christmas one-shots I mentioned previously, so I hope to start posting those soon. 
> 
> Thanks for sticking around. It's hard to find inspiration when I'm not really supposed to be doing any extra typing.


	35. Part Trente-cinq

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little bit about the new house.

Part Trente-cinq

\---------------------------

  
Over the next couple weeks time was primarily spent shopping and figuring out what needed to be done on the boy's new house. The Molina's neighbors across the street were happy to clear the sale quickly, they were moving to be closer to their family (mostly because of grandkids), and Bobby had offered slightly more than the asking price right away.

"All right!" Bobby clapped his hands and grinned, "It's the day the furniture is being delivered and I need all four of you to help direct where it goes, cool?"

There was a chorus of 'Yeahs!' and he nodded, pleased. It had been a fun time hanging out with the guys and living out an almost movie-like shopping spree montage, even if there weren't any time skips and easy scene changes. Ray had tagged along whenever he wasn't busy with photoshoots, and on the past two weekends the girls and Carlos had joined.

The house was big and spacious, bigger than the Molina's. It had 5 bedrooms, three upstairs and two on the main floor. There was a small office/den, decent living room area, and a nice open kitchen, all also on the main floor. Willie, Alex and Luke had all chosen the upstairs bedrooms, Luke winning paper/rock/scissors for the master with the connected bathroom. Reggie had decided he would rather be on the main floor, he was usually awake the earliest anyway, and he was excited to start cooking breakfast on the days when they didn't go over and eat Ray's pancakes or breakfast burritos, or whatever. 

They figured 'family' breakfasts made the most sense to do on the weekends. Aside from Luke stumbling out of bed to at least say goodbye and good luck to Julie on her way to school, the boys were not exactly early morning people if they didn't need to be. Well, Willie kinda was, he had bought painting supplies when they were out shopping and set up the corner of his room for art. As a ghost he hadn't had the chance to do much with his second favorite hobby, and he was ready to make up for some lost time.

  
\---------Shopping flashback------------------

"Oh, Alex, we have to go in here!" Willie tugged him into the store advertising a sale on painting and drawing supplies.

Alex was surprised, "You paint?"

Willie actually blushed a little bit, "Yeah, it's one thing I really missed as a ghost. I could skate because I had my board, but I couldn't really go buy brushes and canvas as a ghost."

"Wow, that's too bad. I didn't really have hobbies other than drumming, and since time didn't pass for us the same, I never really missed it, it only felt like an hour," Alex ran a hand through his hair, "I bet you're pretty good."

He earned a quick kiss on the cheek for that, "Thanks. I'm excited to see what you think once I have the chance to work on something."

They were interrupted when Alex's cell phone buzzed with a text from Bobby, letting them know to meet in the food court for lunch in 20 minutes.

"Will you help me grab some stuff Alex? We can maybe have them deliver it to the house, at least if I pick out some larger canvases."

"Of course, teach me about quality paintbrushes," Alex smiled happily.

\-----------Present---------------------------

The boys had all had a lot of fun picking out colors and themes for their bedrooms.

Willie had chosen a range of brighter blues and navy shades for his room, he loved patterns and crazy color combinations, but he wanted to rotate his paintings and art on his walls as he made it, so he kept the bedspread and the big stuff more subdued. Alex had picked more pastel blues and grays for most of his stuff, he was not so secretly hoping to decorate with some of Willie's art as well. He was glad to have his own space, sometimes he needed a little quiet time alone.

Luke had gone with different shades of green, he liked the feel of it, a tiny feeling of the outdoors in his room (he had already begged Willie for a forest painting at some point). Luke had gotten help from Carlos and ordered several vintage band posters online to decorate his walls, also. He had specifically asked Julie's opinion on how many and where they should go, though, he wanted her to feel at home in his room, of course.

Reggie wasn't sure right away what he wanted, but Ray had luckily been on their shopping trip for this stuff, and he had helped him pick out a nice dark gray bedding set, with a slight pattern of red swirls. Reggie also picked out a large red bean bag chair, one big enough to lay around in, and a new stand for his bass. 

Luke also got a new guitar stand, and Bobby presented Alex with an electronic drum set that had the option of headphones, so he could practice whenever he felt like it without really disturbing anyone else.

\--------------------------

"Wow, this place looks amazing!" Flynn and Carrie were getting the full tour now that everything was set up. 

Carrie bounced a little, "I love the couch in the living room, ours also has the 'cozy corner' as I call it, and you got two! It's the best to curl up in for movie nights."

Julie chuckled, looking up to Luke at her side and squeezing his hand, "You hear that? I'm going to make you watch so many movies now."

He gazed down at her, his face alight with happiness, "I can't wait."

"Anyway!" Flynn rolled her eyes at the two of them. She wasn't really annoyed, but they could get sappy really fast and she was hungry, she wanted to see the rest of the house and get back to Julie's. Ray had made lasagna with Reggie, and Bobby had pestered them while they put it together, the three of them had skipped the tour, Reggie to help finish the garlic bread. Flynn had caught a whiff of all of the food when she and Carrie had met Julie before they walked across the street, and she was very excited to eat. "Can we see the rest?"

"Right this way, milady," giving an expansive gesture with one arm, Willie directed them to the stairs, "Allow us to show you our humble lodgings."

Alex shook his head fondly at the theatricality, and followed Willie up the stairs behind Flynn and Carrie. Luke and Julie hung back, she had already seen everything since she had been helping move things around and decorate the whole time.

"Hey."

Julie met Luke's eyes with curiosity, "What's up?"

He tugged her hand and pulled her into him for a hug, pressing a kiss to her head, "I love you."

She grinned into his chest, him saying those words never got old, "I love you, too."

His arms tightened around her for a long moment and then he stepped back, tipping his head to the stairs, "Let's go see what they think."

When they caught up with the others, they had finished peeking into Luke's room, and were in Alex's, floating ideas for what paintings Willie could create for his walls.

"Maybe a nice seascape?" Carrie had her arms crossed and a considering look on her face, "Do you paint that kind of thing, even?" She laughed, "Maybe we should start with that? What do you usually paint, Willie? What do you _l_ _ike_ to paint?"

Willie laughed with her, "Yeah, good call, wouldn't want to promise something I can't do. But, actually, yes, I do like landscapes and paint them quite a bit. Seascapes too." He caught sight of Luke and Julie in the doorway, "Luke has already commissioned a forest painting for his wall. I'm humbled by his confidence in my skills when he's never seen anything I've done."

Luke had to roll his eyes at that, "Willie, you took Alex to a _museum_ for your first date, even if neither of you were calling it that. You were lecturing him about the different brush textures and paint properties when you met us for lunch after going to that art supply store. And when I asked you said you _liked_ painting nature scenes. If whatever you paint isn't fantastic, I'll wear sleeves for a month."

Everyone stared at him, Luke could barely stand to wear sleeves for a full day, much less a _month_.

Willie coughed and cleared his throat, that was incredibly kind and it was a little overwhelming to be the focus of such support.

Julie noticed his look of gratified discomfort and smiled at him, "Just accept it. Luke will always be more confident in you than you will know what to do with, it's just how he is."

"And I'm right to be," Luke crossed his arms and gave everyone a look of defiance. "You're all awesome and you never give yourselves enough credit, so someone has to."

Carrie suddenly had a weird sense of deja vu, a memory of her dad telling her a bedtime story when she was little, about one of his best friends, a guy who always believed in him and their band, a guy who the thought of made her dad smile with deep sadness in his eyes.

"Carrie!" Flynn caught her arm as she wavered on her feet.

" _It's you,_ " her eyes were wide as she focused on Luke. Pieces of half-forgotten stories, an old empty demo CD case with a photo insert she had found as a child that her dad had quickly taken away, the awkward conversation moments between all of these people and her dad recently, and the implausible 'hologram' explanation, the previously disconnected thoughts coalescing into a suddenly clear understanding of the last couple months.

They all looked at her, uncertain and worried, and all she can do is laugh. She's not mad, if they had told her, she would have thought they were nuts. Somehow, though, figuring it out herself just makes her feel relieved, they won't have to censor their conversations and she won't feel like she's being left out of anything anymore.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. So, ghosts, huh?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi. I didn't know how this was going to go, but I wanted to update something since I finally had an idea to start moving this story forward again. Carrie really snuck up on me, didn't plan that, but luckily tomorrow is Friday so I might have time to come up with another chapter this weekend, wish me luck. This one is also barely edited, so sorry for any mistakes.


	36. Part Trente-six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thanksgiving, Willex, and Willie has an overdue talk with the guys.

Part Trente-six

\-----------------------------  
  
After Carrie had shocked everyone by calling the boys out as ghosts, they headed back to the Molina's where dinner was a bit crazy. Bobby was chagrined that he hadn't taken his old bedtime stories about the guys into account, he really figured Carrie wouldn't remember. Julie couldn't stop laughing that it was Luke who accidentally outed them, just by being his ridiculously supportive self.

They explained everything to Carrie and swore her to secrecy, she was properly serious about things when they talked about the paperwork and how it wasn't exactly legally obtained. 

"That's why you really went to Canada? Well, that makes a lot more sense. Sorry I wasn't very nice about it Dad."

"It's okay baby, you know now. It will be nice to be able to talk about them with you, too. I didn't like keeping this secret from you." Bobby wrapped an arm around her and gave her a quick side-hug where they sat.

"It'll be good not to worry about calling you 'Bobby' now too, since she knows." Reggie shrugged, he was usually tripping up when he was supposed to call him 'Trevor.'

Carrie giggled at him, "You were a little obvious with that Reg. I'm a bit upset I didn't notice it more and figure things out sooner."

"Nah, you just needed a 'Luke support speech' for that," Julie dissolved into chuckles again.

Luke stuck his lower lip out in an exaggerated pout and crossed his arms, "I thought you loved my speeches, Jules? It's not very nice to keep laughing at your boyfriend."

She shook her head with a fond smile and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek, tugging his arm so she could wrap it around herself, "I think of it as laughing _with_ you. Even Bobby thought your support of your friends was one of your biggest characteristics, he literally told Carrie bedtime stories about it. And it's a big part of why I love you so much." Julie whispered the last part right in his ear, before resting her head on his shoulder and accepting the kiss he pressed to her crown, all tension melting out of him.

"You two are so stupid cute I want to puke."

They turned to Flynn with wide eyes and then the whole table fell apart laughing around them. 

Shrugging to each other they couldn't help but join in.

\---------------------------------------

November continued to fly by, band practices went back on a more steady schedule and Flynn and Carrie tended to come over to hang out and watch with Willie, unless they were off just the two of them. Julie thought it was great, she loved Flynn so much, and with Luke and more time with the band, she had been worried about neglecting Flynn. Since making up with Carrie, though, the two of them were happily hanging out and talking fashion and band marketing, for both 'Julie and the Phantoms' and 'Dirty Candi'. Seemed like Flynn had a new unofficial client to manage, at this rate she would already have a business before ever even going to business school.

Thanksgiving was held at the Wilson's, they had a large table and a crazy fancy kitchen. Reggie had been so happy at the double oven he was almost bouncing. He, Carrie, and Flynn were basically in charge of the food, with Ray somewhat supervising, but most watching and taking notes. Thanksgiving dinner had always been Rose's thing, and he was infinitely grateful he didn't have to try to make it by himself this year.

"Hey Papi, did you hear from Tia Victoria yet?" Julie called from the living room where those of them not cooking had been banished to watch TV.

Ray laughed, he had gotten a text, "Yes Mija, she'll be over later. I think she's a little frustrated she had to cover a shift this morning and couldn't cook, but possibly a little relieved. She hasn't really cooked for Thanksgiving any more than I have."

Julie laughed, but went ahead and explained in response to several curious looks. 

"Tia Victoria thought her biggest responsibility the last year after, well..." she broke off to take a deep breath, smiling at Luke gratefully when he squeezed her close with the arm over her shoulder in support, "she never though my dad was cooking enough, but it was partly because she always somehow showed up on nights we were having leftovers, it was kinda hilarious."

"So she just kept missing the nights he was cooking?" Alex looked amused.

"Yup. I mean, he was cooking less than now, and he did make bigger amounts so we could freeze and reheat, and he doesn't have the most variety in his skills sometimes, but we were always eating fine."

"That's fantastic," Willie chuckled, "She's kinda relieved Reggie can cook so well, then, huh?"

"She is. Her work has been keeping her pretty busy, but in the few times we've all hung out you've seen how she is. You all better expect a _crazy_ amount of Christmas presents."

"Ray's idea about telling her just the minimum about you having 'complicated family dynamics' and deciding to move here to 'live out your music dreams with Julie' was really ingenious." Bobby shook his head, "Rose always said her sister could never could turn down a sad story."

"I'm just glad she's stepped back a little. I love her, but she was getting too involved for a minute. She deserves to go out and have her own life, not be dropping by to check on us every night she has free. Somehow the boys being around has made her loosen up, and she's more relaxed, like before." Julie was happy her aunt had started moving on herself, not just worrying about them moving on.

\-------------------------------------

Dinner was delicious with lots of compliments for the chefs, and when everyone finally went home that evening they were full, sleepy and content.

Willie and Alex hung back in the new living room, 'How The Grinch Stole Christmas' was on and they decided to stay up to watch it.

"Oh, Carrie is right calling these 'cuddle corners', they are really nice," Alex curled around Willie on the couch, enjoying the closeness of his boyfriend.

Willie just hummed and tugged Alex's arm closer around him, resting his head on Alex's chest. He liked this movie, but he had been craving this quiet time and he was very much enjoying it.

"Max is the best part of this movie," Alex paused, "Hey maybe we can get a puppy now that we have our own house? I've always wanted a dog."

A laugh bubbled out of Willie, "Well, I'm okay with that and I have no doubt Reggie would love it. You might want to ask Julie to ask Luke, though, he might not necessarily want a puppy around to chew up any amp cords or possibly pee on his guitar. We could do some research though, get all sorts of puppy-proofing stuff and look up a good training school. Or, even better, we could get a rescue dog. Honestly, I think I'd rather do that."

Alex went quiet, then spoke with a slightly choked up whisper, "That would be perfect, especially since we're kinda like rescues ourselves. This is the best Thanksgiving I've had in years."

"Oh, Alex," Willie pulled him into a tight hug, he knew the last few years with Alex's actual family had been less than enjoyable. "We can talk to the guys tomorrow and see how they would feel about a dog, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, that sounds good."

They fell silent, holding each other and settling in to pay full attention to the movie.

\------------------------------------------

Reggie predictably woke up first, and came out to the kitchen to start breakfast, jumping when Willie softly called a 'good morning' from the couch where he and Alex had fallen asleep. He untangled himself from his boyfriend and got up to help Reggie make French Toast.

"You guys stay up very late last night?" Reggie asked as he started mixing the batter.

"Not too late, but after all the food we were pretty tired. Alex was out by the end of 'The Grinch' and I think I fell asleep part way through 'Frosty' which isn't my favorite anyway."

"What's your favorite?"

"Well, I've always been a fan of 'Rudolph' and the elf that wants to be a dentist, Hermey."

Reggie stilled, "We watched that every Christmas, the Island of Misfit Toys is rather relatable."

Willie sighed in sympathy and walked over to give Reggie a quick hug, "I kinda get it, but you guys never have to feel like that again, we're all family now, okay?"

A small smile stretching across his lips, Reggie nodded as he stepped back from the hug. "Thanks, Willie. I'm really glad you ran into Alex, who knows if any of this would have happened without you? Even the bad stuff with Caleb got us to now, and I really, really, like now."

"Thank you Reg, it means a lot to know you forgive me."

"Forgive you for what?" Luke said with a yawn as he stumbled into the kitchen to slump down in chair at the table.

Willie looked down and fidgeted with a fork on the counter, "Uh, for the thing with Caleb. I can never really apologize enough."

Luke's sleepy face was incredibly unimpressed, "Willie, we forgave you as soon as you told us what was going on and that he owned your soul. It's in the past. You're part of our family now. What is it... oh, 'It's little, and broken, but still good.'"

Alex sat up from the couch, having woken up and caught the last of their conversation, "Did you really just quote a _Disney_ movie, Luke?"

"That was a good freaking movie, Alex. Don't even pretend you weren't crying at the end!"

"Fine. But I wasn't the only one!"

"It's a great movie. And, speaking of found families, Alex and I were talking last night, and we wanted to ask you guys what you thought about adopting a rescue dog, now that we have the house?" Willie watched Reggie, he was sure he would be excited.

"Oh my God, yes! Can we Luke, can we? Please?" 

"Uh, I can't really think of a reason why not?"

"Really?" Alex beamed, "We should ask Julie about what shelter would be best, Willie and I want to make sure we find a dog that really needs us."

Luke smiled at Alex, "That sounds really good, we can check with her later today. She said she would come over once she wakes up, today is usually a day she enjoys sleeping in fairly late."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! I finally found some new creative focus for this story! 
> 
> Luke's quote is, of course, from 'Lilo & Stitch'


	37. Part Trente-sept

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Juke fluff. The boys want to adopt a dog. A little bit of angst.

Part Trente-sept

\--------------------------------

Julie finally walked in their front door at one o'clock that afternoon, hair up in a messy ponytail and wearing a comfy outfit of leggings and one of Luke's new sweatshirts that he had left at her house, her glasses perched on her nose.

She wandered into the living room where Luke was sprawled out writing in his song journal. As she climbed over Luke to lay between him and the back of the couch, she asked, "Where is everybody?"

He tossed his journal on the coffee table in favor of wrapping her up in his arms, a very pleased smile on his face at the sight of her in his sweatshirt. "Reggie is hanging in his room, might be napping actually. As for Willie and Alex, they're in Willie's room, he was going to work on the forest painting I asked him for, and Alex decided to watch him work."

"Mhmmm, that's nice," Julie snuggled into him closer, nose nuzzling into her favorite place at the crook of his neck and breathing him in.

Luke brought a hand up and tapped her glasses, taking them off for her when she lifted her head, and placing them on the coffee table with his notebook so they weren't pressing into her face. She smiled at him, and he kissed her forehead, putting his hand on her back to hold her close again. They lay there quietly for several long minutes before Luke broke the silence.

"Jules? Alex and Willie had an idea, and we were hoping you could help us. What do you know about the animal shelters around here?"

"Animal shelters?" she sounded confused.

"Yeah, they want us to adopt a rescue dog, now that we have the house and everything."

"Really? Are you and Reggie on board with this?"

"We are. We all agree we want one that really needs a home, though, so we need to figure out the right shelter to go to." 

Julie pulled back to meet his eyes and the look on her face was soft and understanding, "I'll do whatever I can to help Luke. Giving a dog a home sounds wonderful."

He grinned at her and leaned in for a kiss, his girlfriend was the best.

\-------------------------------------------------

Julie helped the guys do some research, even enlisting her dad for his thoughts, and the next weekend they were walking in the doors of a nearby animal shelter to look at dogs.

"Uh, wow. Are all of you looking for pets?" The receptionist looked a bit overwhelmed at the four boys, Julie, Carlos, and Ray when they all walked in together.

"Oh, no." Ray smiled at the young woman and read her name tag, "Um, Laura, is it? It's just the boys that are looking for a dog, the three of us are just along to help." He gestured to himself, Julie, and Carlos.

"Yeah, Luke is Julie's boyfriend and they live across the street, so we're going to get to play and help out with the dog too!" Carlos was beaming, he was almost more excited than Reggie and Alex, which was really saying something.

"Okay, well then. Do you have a size preference, or age for the dog? We mostly have mixed breeds so we don't usually ask about that."

Luke stepped forward, and with a glance at the other guys, he spoke for all of them, "Do you have any that have had trouble being adopted? We want to be a home for one that really needs it." 

Laura melted at that, "That is a wonderful way to pick. Here, let me show you a few we have that have been here the longest."

She waved then to follow her through a door, and then another, the second one opening and causing barks and whimpers from several cages that lined a long hallway.

"Now, this one is a larger dog, he's been here awhile, this one is more medium-sized....."

Luke tuned her out, he had caught sight of a little fuzzy nose snuffling by the door of a cage further down the hall and whimpering. He made a beeline down to kneel down by the cage door, holding out his hand. The dog was a dark chestnut brown color and it seemed to be fairly young, its tongue darted out and gave a quick, tiny lick to Luke's hand, a plaintive whimper still sounding. 

"This one." Luke could just feel it. He raised his voice to call down and interrupt Laura, "This one, how long has it been here?"

"Uh, well. Oh dear. That one _has_ been here awhile, he was actually adopted once, but then the family returned him. They didn't realize how much work a puppy can be. His sister is still here too, they were part of a litter that was abandoned by the highway, but those two were the runts and all the others were adopted almost immediately."

"Which is his sister?"

"She's with him, in the back of the cage, probably."

Luke peered into the back corner, and sure enough, there was another small puppy curled up, this one the same brown with a little white, big eyes now looking at him and her tail just starting to wag. 

"These two. Guys it has to be these two." 

The rest of the group had moved down to the cage where he knelt, even Alex and Reggie silent at the conviction and pleading in his voice. Luke stared up at them with his own eyes big and no one could imagine saying no.

"Do you want to play with them a little and see if you're sure?" Laura was a bit uncomfortable at the suddenly heavy atmosphere.

Ray lay a hand on Luke's shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze, "Yes, please, Laura, that would be great."

She nodded and went over to another door to call one of the hands-on volunteers to set things up and come get the puppies out of the cage. 

"Luke, I thought we were only going to get one dog?" Alex posed the question hesitantly.

Luke shrugged at everyone, "I don't know what to tell you, but these two puppies are ours, I can feel it."

Everyone exchanged glances, but it was hard to argue when he seemed so confident. Of course, as soon as the volunteer came in and pulled the puppies out, handing the more sociable boy to Luke, and the shy little girl to Alex, well it was all over.

Alex fell in love as soon as she was in his arms, and when Reggie leaned over to pet her she licked his face, and he was gone. Willie loved all dogs, and he was all in when he got a closer look at her, and at the happiness on Alex's face.

Luke, for his part, had already bonded with the boy, and watching the frantic tail wagging as the sweet ball of fur snuggled into her boyfriend was possibly the cutest thing Julie had ever seen. 

Carlos and Ray were both happy if the boys were happy, and Carlos was fidgeting with anticipation of having access to not just one, but _two_ puppies.

They played in the 'get to know each other' room for a short while, but it was really already a done deal. Julie had helped the guys fill out applications online before they came, so it ended up just taking a few signatures and being handed a few preliminary informational pamphlets on caring for and training puppies and they were all set. Luke was officially the very proud dad of the boy puppy, and Reggie had conceded the little girl to Alex, since he had come up with the idea and they were all going to be sharing them anyway.

They were lucky the shelter had a small selection of essential supplies for purchase, they had only brought one leash with them, not expecting to walk out with two dogs instead of one. Luke immediately claimed the leash they had, he had been the one to pick it out at the pet store, it had little music notes scattered over it. Alex picked out a cute pink leash with paw prints on it that were a shade darker.

\-----------------

"Oh, now we have to go to the pet store and get more stuff, don't we, yes we do. We have to get more stuff for you, Fender, and your sister, get another bowl, and official tags for your collars, that's right, yes, yes it is." Luke was fully in love. Julie struggled to stifle her giggles with her hand as she sat next to him in the third seat of the SUV while he babbled to the puppy.

Alex, Willie, and Reggie were just as bad in the middle seat, fawning over the little girl they had named Lyric. Carlos was on his phone in the front seat, the shelter had mentioned they thought the puppies were possibly some sort of Labrador/Beagle mix and he wanted to look up pictures to see if they matched.

"Guys, look! I think they were probably right, some mix of Chocolate Lab and Beagle," he passed back his phone and everyone gushed over how cute the pictures were and how much cuter the puppies were in person, especially _their_ puppies.

\------------------------------------------------

  
Since the puppies had been at the shelter for awhile, they were mostly potty-trained, although the boys had been warned that the change to a new place might cause a few accidents. However, the dogs seemed to take to their new home like they had always been there, and settled in easily.

"Fender! Come here cutie!" Julie walked in their door after school that Monday, setting her backpack down, already calling for the puppy.

He dropped the toy he and Luke were playing tug-of-war with, and immediately ran to her for petting.

Luke stood up and crossed his arms, shaking his head in fond exasperation, "Of course he chooses you."

She looked up from where she was kneeling in the entryway, scratching the puppy's ears and smiled at him happily.

He sighed and went over to kiss her on the forehead and say hello, he couldn't blame Fender, he would always choose her too.

"I saw Reggie and Alex taking Lyric on a walk. You didn't go with them?"

"I wanted to wait for you, since I knew you'd be home from school right about, well, now."

Julie stood up and stepped into his arms for a proper hug, snuggling in and closing her eyes, "I'm glad. I love getting to see you right when I get home."

Their quiet moment was broken by a short bark at their feet. They looked down to see Fender sitting and looking at them expectantly.

"I think he's ready to go catch up with the others," Julie laughed.

"Probably. You coming?"

She shook her head no, "I'm going to go work on my homework in your room for a bit, I have some math I want to get done before dinner."

Luke grinned and kissed her deeply, one of his favorite things was when she made herself at home in his room and he could get back from walking the dogs or playing with them in the yard and find her there.

"Okay, love you Jules."

"Love you too. Now go walk your dog before I decide to steal him for some cuddle time!" She grabbed her backpack and headed up the stairs.

Luke laughed as he grabbed Fender's leash and hooked it on his collar. He gave the dog a quick scratch behind the ears and told him, "She's incredible, you know? I have no idea how I got so lucky."

The puppy gave a bark of agreement (well, he barked, Luke decided it was obviously in agreement). The two of them slipped out the front door, Luke taking one last glance back at the stairs where Julie had disappeared.

\--------------------------------------------

"Hey Julie!" Willie called out to her as she passed his open door.

"Oh, hey Willie. You working on the painting for Luke again?" She set her bag down and went in to check out his progress.

He nodded and gestured with his paintbrush, "Yeah, what do you think?"

Julie caught her breath, "Whoa." She raised an eyebrow at him, "Luke has no worries of losing his grand statement of wearing sleeves for a month if it's bad. This is gorgeous so far, and I have no doubt it will be even more gorgeous when it's finished."

Willie blushed and ducked his head with a happy smile, "Thanks Julie." Then he caught her eye and gave a sly smirk, "That was a pretty good supportive comment, Luke must be rubbing off on you." 

She paused and blinked at him, before flushing red. She smacked his arm gently and muttered in embarrassment, "Oh, shut up."

He just laughed and after a second she joined in, she had to admit he was good at subtly teasing jokes like that one. They hadn't hung out much one-on-one, but she appreciated his laid back vibe, the other boys could be so hyper together, and he really did help balance them out.

"Okay, I'm going to leave you to it, I have some math to work on."

Willie grimaced, "Yuck, good luck with that."

She tossed a 'thank you' over her shoulder at she left the room, grabbing her bag and walking down the hall to Luke's room so she could spread out her books and notes on his bed. 

Julie had decided doing homework in Luke's room was really nice, she could prop herself up with his pillow that smelled like him, and the feeling of him was there even when he wasn't. Something which really only happened when he was out walking the dogs with the guys. When he was there, he would sometimes help her with her homework, or just sit with her and listen to music quietly while she studied. As hyper as he could be a lot of the time, if it was just the two of them Luke tended to be still, just enjoying having her close.

\-----------------------------------------

Luke and Fender caught up with Alex, Reggie, and Lyric right as they got to the dog park a few blocks away. The boys let the puppies run around, and played catch with a rubber butterfly squeak toy that Julie had picked out when they were at the pet store. It was a favorite of the two new four-legged members of the family.

After a decent half-hour workout, they called the dogs and headed back home.

"So, I have the meatloaf ready to go in the oven, and I'm making mashed potatoes and green beans. Julie will stay for dinner, right Luke?" Reggie stopped and turned around, "Luke?"

The boy in question was staring at his phone, a look of resignation on his face. "I have to get this. Can you take Fender, Reg?" He held out the leash and Reggie immediately took it, his mouth opening to ask who was calling.

"It's my dad," Luke swiped a thumb and shrugged at Reggie, and Alex who had stopped further up the street. "Hey Dad."

Reggie tugged Fender's leash gently and strode quickly over to Alex, giving Luke some space. "Let's go, he'll be along. Maybe it's better he can walk home while he talks, instead of just pacing in the driveway."

Alex shot a concerned look over his shoulder as they left Luke, "I guess."

Luke bounced in place as he let them go, faking enthusiasm at the usual short small talk these calls always started with.

"Yeah, I'm good Dad. I- yes, I miss you too." A pause. "That's really great....... Oh, you sat in on a few sessions? How did that go?"

\------------------------------------

When Luke got home, a few minutes after Alex and Reggie, he just nodded at them and went right up to his room. He gave a distracted wave to Willie on the way, who was in his room greeting Lyric after her park playtime, and giving the sweet girl lots of pets.

The phone call with his dad definitely left him needing some Julie time, and he knew she would be lounging on his bed attempting to to figure out her math homework.

He froze and then leaned against the door frame, just taking in the perfect picture that was his bed. Julie had obviously been knocked over by an overly excited puppy and she was laughing and petting Fender, even as she tried to push him away so he stopped licking her cheek.

A soft smile took over his face and he crossed his arms, all his tension disappearing.

Finally Julie got control of the puppy and looked up to see him in the doorway, "Luke! Your dog has been attacking me, where were you? I would've thought you'd _help_ me, not just watch!" Her face was flushed and happy.

Luke pushed off the door frame and went over to her, crawling up and settling to sit at the head of the bed against the pillows. He reached over and looped his arms around her waist, gently hauling her and Fender up, so she was sitting across his lap, the puppy in her lap, and burying his face in her hair.

Julie went still, letting go of the puppy who climbed off her and trotted to the end of the bed and curled up, his big eyes watching them. 

"Luke?" She shifted so she could wrap her arms around his neck.

"My dad called."

" _Oh._ "

"He said therapy has been going well, he's even gone to a couple sessions with my mom." A deep breath, then, "He wanted me to meet them for lunch."

Julie clutched him tighter, "What did you say?"

"I told him no. I know therapy goes at a difference pace for different people, and she might be doing much better, but it's only been, like, two months. What if I see them and we fall back into the same old argument and pattern, and it messes things up? You know I've been talking to your dad a lot about all this. He says it's not just about her, and I remembered. So, I told my dad the truth, _I'm_ not ready, even if she is, or thinks she is, or whatever."

"Then you did the right thing, even if it was difficult. How can I help you right now?"

"Just stay right here with me for awhile, Jules. Just stay right here," he tried to hug her impossibly closer.

"Always, Luke." She pressed a kiss to his neck and cuddled further into him.

Fender sensed the conversation was over and let out a soft whine, creeping up the bed and then over Julie's legs, so he could snuggle into the side of Luke's hip, his own way of offering comfort. Julie and Luke both huffed out a tiny laugh and each dropped a hand to pet the puppy, fingers tangling together as they gave his back a little scratch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ta-Da! Puppies!
> 
> And a longer chapter, I'm finally back! If I get stuck now, I can just write some cute puppy hi-jinks. :)
> 
> Oh, yeah, also, NO CLUE if my animal shelter stuff was correct. I've never been to one, my childhood dog was from my sister's friend's family who bred dogs, he was the runt so we got to have him. And then I ended up developing allergies to basically all furry animal dander when I was a teenager, so now I have to take meds before I can visit my siblings and their pets, or my friends and their pets... you get the picture.


	38. Part Trente-huit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stuff happens, there's some Carrie and Reggie being friends.

Part Trente-huit  
\---------------------------

Julie burst into her room, tossing her backpack over by her desk. This weekend they were finally going to go get a Christmas tree, well, two, one for the Molina house and one for the boys' house. It was Friday, and the school day had seemed to drag on _forever_. She quickly changed into some yoga pants and one of Luke's sweatshirts, she had to keep bringing them back to him and switching them out when they stopped smelling like him. She was officially addicted to being wrapped in his soft sweatshirts and his smell, it made her feel comfortable and safe. Well, at least as a second choice to actually being in his arms. 

She hadn't gone straight over to the boys' house after school today because they were planning a pizza night and Christmas movie marathon, it was a way to help force them into the Holiday spirit this year. Julie sighed, it was going to be a difficult time acting festive without the presence and sound of her mom humming Christmas carols as she baked cookies, and wondering if this would have been the year she perfected her dough recipe for gingerbread house building.

Julie was also a little worried about the guys, especially Luke. She knew he had left his parents around Christmas, and since he was still putting off having lunch with them, he had been quieter and more pensive than she had ever seen him. He was extra cuddly with her, though, which she couldn't say she really minded or even that it was that much of a change. 

Reggie seemed mostly happy, glad to spend the holidays with his chosen family, new and old. Willie was excited, he'd been a ghost for awhile and Christmas wasn't exactly a family affair with Caleb at the Ghost Club, having it with family this year was going to be great. Alex was difficult to read, but he didn't appear to be upset by the coming holiday.

She walked downstairs, going over to give her dad a hug where he was thumbing through her mom's worn recipe book. He smiled at her, a melancholy look in his eyes. "She would have loved the boys, they would be an excuse to make dozens more cookies than usual. I bet she would have added more different kinds, too."

"I agree, Papi. I was thinking about the dough for the gingerbread houses, I bet she would have loved to have Reggie help her work on it."

"That's a sucker bet, mija," Ray squeezed her tighter for a moment, then released her and tapped the cover of the book. "I think we need to schedule extra baking time into our day tomorrow. It will be a wonderful way to sort of keep her here with us."

Julie nodded, a bittersweet upturn to her lips, "I like that idea."

"Are you going over now to hang out before dinner and movie night?"

"Yeah, if they haven't taken the puppies for their walk yet, I might tag along. You'll be over around 5:30, right? That's when we told everyone else to be there, so we can order pizza around 6:00."

"We'll be there. Carlos should be home by 5 and we'll be over after that."

"Sounds good. I love you Papi."

"I love you too, mija. Give Fender and Lyric an extra cuddle for me, and tell them Carlos and I will give them all the petting they can handle when we get there."

Julie laughed as she ducked out the door, "You'll have to fight Flynn and Carrie, they'll also be giving out tons of pets and cuddles. I don't think it will ever be too much for those puppies to handle, though."

Ray's chuckle followed her out the door, he knew those puppies were always being showered with affection, no one could resist the sweet little fur balls.

\--------------------------------------

Julie had barely made it through the door across the street when Luke was up off the couch and wrapping her in a hug, burying his face in her hair. "Jules," he sighed out her name and relaxed around her.

"Luke. Is everything okay?" she held him close, rubbing his back gently.

"I just missed you."

"He's been sitting on the couch staring into space for like an hour. Thank goodness you're finally here," Reggie called from the kitchen, elbow deep in some kind of dough.

Luke laughed awkwardly, stepping back from Julie and running a hand through his hair, "I was thinking about some options for song lyrics."

"For the song you're working on you haven't showed anyone yet?" Julie lowered her voice and looked at him pointedly.

His eyes widened, "Um, well, I- How did you know?"

She smirked at him, "I know you, Luke." She reached out, catching his hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze, "I get it, and I'm here when you're ready."

"Thank you, Jules. I love you," he said with a soft smile meant just for her, squeezing her hand in return. 

"I love you, too. Now I want to see what Reggie's working on." She tugged on his hand and pulled him into the kitchen behind her, "Where's everyone else?" 

"Alex and Willie took the puppies on their daily walk to the park. Willie was going to skateboard for a little while, too. They should be back pretty soon."

Julie tilted her head questioningly at Reggie, "So, what're you making Reg? I have no doubt whatever it is will be amazing."

" _I_ am making sugar cookie dough. It needs to sit overnight in the fridge." He grinned proudly, it was nice to be acknowledged for his proficiency in the kitchen.

"Did you look up a recipe or...?" Julie bounced a bit on her toes, "I just- Dad and I thought we could plan some time for baking tomorrow after getting the trees. My mom had several cookie recipes for the holidays, and she kept trying little adjustments to her gingerbread dough every year, she wanted to make it perfect for making houses, or even a whole village. We both think she would have loved your input, and making it would be a good way to keep her with us this year."

Luke stepped closer and slid an arm around her waist in support, and Reggie looked a little overwhelmed.

"You- you really think your mom would have _liked_ me? _Ray_ thinks she would have liked me?"

"She would have _loved_ all of you," Julie had to swallow and blink back the tears that suddenly filling her eyes.

"I know we would have loved her too," Luke murmured in her ear, sharing a soft look with Reggie.

\-----------------------------------

Reggie went back to his dough, and Luke guided Julie up the stairs and down the hall to his room.

As they settled on his bed, his song journal in front of them, Luke mustered up the courage to ask her the question that had been plaguing him all afternoon.

"Jules, do you think your dad would go with me? To lunch with my parents?"

She turned to him in slight disbelief, "Luke, as I recall he told you he had your back. He meant it."

Luke's hand went up and he rubbed his neck in his signature tell of nervousness, "I just don't want to drag him into my drama anymore than he has been already. My family stuff really isn't his problem."

Julie's expression softened, sometimes she forgot the guys were unfamiliar with the unconditional support her dad was willing to give. To her, when he said he loved her and had her back, he meant it and _showed_ it. The guys were more used to being told they were loved and then being scolded when they weren't the people their parents wanted them to be. It was understandable that Luke craved Ray's support, but wasn't truly confident it wouldn't be taken away, even if Ray had been consistently backing up his promise so far.

"Luke. I know you've talked to him about stuff, you trust him, right?"

"I- of course."

She cupped his cheek in her hand and locked eyes with him, "Then trust him to be there for you if you ask. I know you haven't told me about everything, and that's okay, but I'm _so glad_ you are talking to my dad. And he _will_ be there for you if you ask, Luke."

He searched her eyes for a moment, then closed his own and leaned his forehead to hers, "I needed to hear that Julie, _thank you_."

A soft sigh, and then she gently pressed her lips to his. It stayed chaste for a few seconds, then passion took over and their lips opened to each other. The world disappeared, and Luke's last fleeting thought was how glad he was that he had closed his door.

\------------------------------

It was not too much later when a scratching and whining alerted Julie and Luke that their time alone was over. They pulled apart reluctantly, and Julie went to open the door for Fender to come bounding in and jump on the bed, excited to be back with his two most favorite people. He loved everyone in his family, but Luke, and therefore Julie, were his absolute favorites.

"Hey buddy! Didja have fun on your walk with Alex and Willie and Lyric? Huh? Didja?" Luke cupped the puppy's head and scratched behind his ears as Fender's tail wagged like crazy, and he tried his best to hop up and lick Luke's face.

Julie leaned in the doorway, her eyes soft as she watched the two of them. 

"Hey Julie! Luke! Get down here! We need to go over pizza orders so we can narrow it down before everyone gets here, otherwise it's going to take _ages_ to decide!" 

Luke looked up at Julie is slight surprise, "What time is it? I thought we told everyone 5:30 and it's only, what, 5:00? Why is Carrie already here?"

Julie shrugged, "Who knows? She is organized, though, maybe she wanted to help get things ready. That's nice of her."

Luke gave Fender a last snuggle and stood up, taking Julie's hand and tugging her down the hall, "Guess we better help too, huh?" He patted his leg, "Come on Fender!"

The puppy scrambled off the bed with a short bark and ran after them.

\-----------------------------

Carrie had actually arrived just after Luke and Julie had gone upstairs. She was on a mission to talk to Reggie, and something told her this was a good time to catch him alone.

\---------Earlier, downstairs...--------------

"Hello?"

"Carrie? You're early, what's up?" Reggie turned from where he was settling his sugar cookie dough in the fridge. He walked over to wash his hands, looking at her inquisitively.

She beamed at him, glancing around, "Is it just you right now? Do you have time for a private conversation?"

"Julie and Luke are upstairs, but uh, sure? We can go to my room." Reggie waved a hand, "After you, mi'lady."

Carrie giggled at him, and shook her head fondly. She wasted no time flopping down in his huge beanbag chair once they got to his room, she was _so_ planning to ask him if they could drag it out to the living room for her to sit in for the movies tonight.

"So what's up Carrie?" He was a little confused, as he settled himself on the end of his bed. He couldn't think of anything they might need to talk about privately.

Her face went serious immediately. "Reggie, I want to ask you about something, but please hear me out completely before you say anything, okay?"

"Uh, okay, sure?"

"It's Kayla." She held up a hand to remind him to let her finish when he went red and opened his mouth to question her. "I am just wondering if you are a little worried about asking her out? I know I said something when I figured things out about you tripping up and calling my dad 'Bobby' instead of 'Trevor,' and I hope that didn't make you nervous. Kayla mentioned you sometimes take awhile to answer her texts...not in a bad or upset way! But it made me think that you might be choosing your words carefully, and be worried about hanging out with her in case you say something that refers to your, well, previous life?"

Reggie was staring at her in surprise, this conversation was certainly unexpected.

Carrie took a deep breath, "I don't want to overstep, but I want her to be happy, and I want _you_ to be happy. I was thinking we could plan a group thing to get hot chocolate and go on a driving tour of the Christmas decorations around the city. I could ask my dad to rent a van or something. That way, if you want, I could sit by you guys and help if you have any trouble with talking to her."

She paused and looked down, twisting her fingers together nervously, "I don't want you to think I'm implying you _would_ mess up or anything, I just want to offer so you know someone has your back. If that would help you feel more relaxed. And there's less pressure if we hang out as a group, it'll be more of a friendly get-to-know each other, rather than a first date or whatever."

Reggie blinked at her as he tried to process the way she had been thinking about him, and planning what she could do to help him with something he hadn't even realized he was worried about.

"Carrie..."

Her head came up and she met his eyes uncertainly.

"I- I think that's one of the nicest things anyone has ever offered to do for me. I _have_ been choosing my words carefully with Kayla, and the idea of asking her out is _scary_. It's not just saying something wrong like that, though," he briefly hesitated.

"What else Reg?" she asked him gently.

"Did- did Bobby tell you anything about my parents?"

"Not really, but based on the cover story for Tia Victoria I'm assuming things weren't great?"

He shook his head, "They argued, well, _fought_ a lot. There was a lot of yelling and slamming doors. As much as I flirt and want to find someone, it's hard not to be afraid that things might turn out like that."

Carrie blew out a soft breath of understanding, "I actually totally get that. You know my mom left when I was little, right?"

"Yeah..."

"It's not the same, of course, but that idea that if you open yourself up to someone you'll probably get hurt? That it won't work out? I get that. It's why I don't really feel that bad about the break up with Nick. He's a good friend and I would feel awful if we couldn't be friends, but we were never really in love, probably because I wasn't really able to let him in like that. I felt so much worse when I was at odds with Julie and Flynn. Julie and I were friends practically since we were born and Flynn joined us in Kindergarten, so I was already close with them before my mom leaving made me build walls. I spent quite awhile believing she was going to come back before it truly sunk in."

"When did she leave?"

"I was 7. And for the first few years she always sent a birthday and Christmas card, but she never asked to see me, not really. I had nannies during the summer, which was when my dad would go on tour. He was always home for the school year, spending lots of time recording in the home studio, but he was there. Except, then he took me with him on tour a couple summers ago, and Julie and Flynn got closer without me. So I found myself unwanted again, even though they didn't realize they were leaving me out. I threw myself into Dirty Candi and started dating Nick, because he was nice and because he didn't ask that much from me."

Reggie just got up and squeezed down next to Carrie on the beanbag chair, wrapping his arms around her in a hug.

She hugged him back, letting out a short, hollow laugh, "We're quite the pair, huh?"

"Carrie, you are awesome. Thank you for talking to me and letting _me_ in. We _are_ quite the pair, but being a pair means we aren't alone anymore."

She laughed for real at that,"Reg, you are awesome too. We'll talk about that group thing and make some plans, yeah? In the meantime we should probably get started on this movie night, I know getting on the same page for pizza toppings is going to be a puzzle with this many people."

He got up and offered her a hand, and they headed out of his room, "Yikes! You are very right about that, we are definitely getting Bobby his own pizza. As far as I know, no one else will eat anchovies, which ewww."

"Oh my God, we haven't had pizza for awhile, I forgot my dad likes those nasty things!"

There was a commotion and a bit of barking at the front door as they reached the kitchen again.

"Hey, Carrie! Did you finish your cookie dough Reggie?"

"Carrie! Hi!"

Alex and Willie were back with the puppies, and after a quick hello pet from Carrie and Reggie, Fender headed up the stairs to find Luke and Julie. He knew they were up there and he was excited to see them and get cuddles.

Lyric happily stayed in the kitchen with Reggie and Carrie petting her and scratching behind her ears.

"How was the walk?" Carrie smiled at Alex, as Willie went to put his skateboard away in the small office/den that they had decided to use as mostly storage.

"It was good, Willie tried some new tricks. I'll never get used to how dangerous some of them look," Alex shook his head, looking fondly exasperated at his boyfriend as he walked back in the room.

"You know I'm careful Hotdog!" Willie slung his arm around Alex and kissed his cheek, making him blush.

"Should we talk about the pizza Carrie?" Reggie reminded her.

"Oh! Yes. I'm assuming Luke and Julie are still upstairs, based on Fender?"

Reggie nodded.

She walked over to the foot of the stairs and called up loudly, ""Hey Julie! Luke! Get down here! We need to go over pizza orders so we can narrow it down before everyone gets here, otherwise it's going to take _ages_ to decide!" 

\-----------Back to present...----------

"So, we have a small, _yuck_ , anchovy pizza for Bobby, and what else?" Reggie asked the group, appreciating the agreeing looks of disgust from everyone when he mentioned the despised topping.

"Eww, Bobby still likes that?!" Alex and Luke mimed gagging, before catching each other's gaze and breaking down into laughter.

Reggie rolled his eyes, they had always done that when the band ordered pizza back in the '90s. 

Carrie clapped her hands and got them back on track, grabbing a nearby pen and paper (Reggie's, for grocery lists), and writing out who wanted what with elaborate arrows and exclamation points. She also looked over at Julie for a silent exchange, adding Flynn's preferences easily. Now, they just needed Ray's and Carlos's opinions and she would have all the information she needed for the correct order.

"How do you even know what that means?" Willie asked, peeking over her shoulder as he refilled his water bottle at the fridge near her.

She shrugged, "I've been party planning for ages, I made up my own system and somehow it always works."

"Oh, well, cool. Thanks for helping," Willie smiled at her.

She nodded and smiled back, a fleeting thought of how different things were now making her mentally give thanks. She was part of this unconventional family, instead of spending most of her time alone, or obsessing over promoting Dirty Candi. Well, she still did that last part, but it was more balanced with the rest of her life.

They all went over and sprawled around the living room, waiting for everyone else and just chatting about everything and nothing.

\-----------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *shrug* Kinda filler, but kinda not? I was going to wait until I finished writing the movie night, but this is already pretty long so I would have ended up splitting it into two chapters anyway. 
> 
> I have a couple Christmas movies for them to watch in mind, but let me know if you have any suggestions! Also, any cookie ideas for them to bake!


	39. Part Trente-neuf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Movie night and some of the next day.

  
Part Trente-neuf

\-------------------

It was a few minutes after 5:30 when the door flew open and Carlos happily ran in, diving between Reggie and Willie on the couch, Ray, Flynn and Bobby trailing behind him. 

"Hey, little man! How's it going?" Reggie fist-bumped Carlos, and then hooked an arm around his neck and ruffled his hair.

"Awww, get off of me!" Carlos laughed and struggled out of Reggie's hold, falling into Willie, who held out his hand for his own fist bump.

Carrie clambered up from the ground, quickly and efficiently gathering the last couple pizza topping preferences she needed and slipping into Reggie's bedroom for some quiet to call in their order while everyone else continued to greet the new arrivals. 

That done, she leaned out the doorway and asked Reggie if she could use his bean bag chair. 

"Hey Reg? Can I bring out your bean bag chair to sit in for the movies?"

He jumped up, answering as he came over to help her, "Of course, Carrie! It's pretty great, right? Ray helped me pick it out."

"Oh it is, I love it, where did you get it?"

Their conversation trailed off and everyone else began discussing which movie to start with. Bobby figured the guys would really like the live action 'Grinch' movie, Flynn insisted on 'Elf' for the lesson in newer pop culture, but it was Ray's quiet suggestion that they all agreed to. 

"Do you think we could start with 'White Christmas'? It was Rose's favorite." He glanced between Julie and Carlos, a hint of tears forming in all of their eyes.

"Oh, Papi. Yes! Please can we watch it first?" Julie turned to Luke, a pleading look on her face (which wasn't really needed, of course he would say yes).

"I'm good with that. What about you guys?" He raised an eyebrow at everyone else, but there were no objections. It was a Christmas movie to watch with their family, no one was too concerned about which order they watched the movies in.

So Ray and Bobby claimed the two arm chairs on each side of the big, U-shaped couch, first helping move the coffee table in the middle closer to the tv, so Carrie and Reggie could fit his beanbag chair in front of the couch. Then, Carrie took the beanbag chair, Flynn flopping down next to her, as Reggie and Carlos spread out along the middle section of the couch. This left the two 'cuddle corners' as Carrie always called them, to the two couples. Julie and Luke snuggled in one with Fender, Alex and Willie in the other with Lyric. 

Everyone stayed quiet as the movie began, the missing presence of Rose causing a few sniffles among those who had known her. Luke comforted Julie, Reggie hugged Carlos, Flynn and Carrie held each other, and Bobby sent Ray a sympathetic glance across the room.

Ray happened to glance over and catch some surreptitious looks between Luke, Bobby, Alex and Reggie. As he opened his mouth to question them, though, Luke caught his eye and shook his head with a mischievous smile and a glance down at Julie in his lap, so Ray just settled back in his chair. He figured if Luke was suggesting whatever it was would be for Julie, it couldn't be bad.

They had ordered several pizzas, enough for ten people. With four teenage boys and Carlos, Carrie had added some extra, so it was going to take awhile, but that was fine. It seemed like everyone was quite captivated by the movie.

"Do you like it so far?" Julie whispered in Luke's ear as Wallace and Davis (the two main male characters) arrived at the club to see the Haynes sisters (the two main female characters).

"Mmhmm, yeah, I like the music so far," he didn't look down at her, just pressed a kiss to her head and kept watching, so she turned back to the TV herself.

Except... when the 'Sisters' song came on Julie could feel Luke tapping his fingers on her arm to the rhythm, and she started to wonder.

Julie giggled a little at the 'pushing, pushing' line, eyes slanting to Flynn. She received an apologetic look in return, and Flynn giggled a little herself, she had been pushy about Nick before, but now it just seemed silly since obviously things had worked out the way they were supposed to.

This became even more evident when 'The Best Things Happen When You're Dancing' started and Luke stood up, pulling Julie up with him to stand behind the couch. Fender snorted at being disturbed and snuggled back into the couch, he was tired and he knew they would be back to cuddle him soon.

Luke proceeded to sing along (in French) and led Julie in a simplified version of the dance as it was onscreen. 

"Wh- what?!" Julie followed his lead, his proficiency making up for her stumbles from the unfamiliar choreography.

He twirled her around and answered when it hit the instrumental part, "This was mémère's favorite Christmas movie too, we used to watch it when I visited at Christmas. More than once. I've probably seen it a hundred times." 

They finished with him dipping her gracefully, and the whole living room exploded into applause.

"You- you..." she gaped at him as he led her to the couch and sat down next to Fender, tugging her back into his lap.

"Shhh, the next part is hilarious."

Everyone turned back to the movie, half of them in shock, half just amused.

"Such a show-off." Reggie muttered with a teasing grin.

"I was wondering when you'd crack. I thought it would be later, but I guess I forgot about that song," Bobby chuckled quietly.

Everyone was even more blown away when Reggie and Alex jumped up to do the choreography for the reprise of 'Sisters' exaggerating it the same way the guys were in the movie.

"You two have seen this a lot too, I take it?" Carrie asked as she giggled.

"I've seen it a few times too, baby. Actually I even watched it in French with Luke when I was working on learning the language," Bobby glanced over at Luke and they shared a nostalgic look.

Ray shook his head, sending a thought to Rose, 'Mi amor, you would have _loved_ these boys so much.'

The pizza showed up right around the point in the movie when the big misunderstanding happens, Ray hit pause and Bobby got up to pay the delivery person, with Reggie jumping up to help carry the stack of boxes to the coffee table. They had already set out the paper plates and napkins, so everyone grabbed a few slices and settled back in before they pressed play again.

"This part always bothered me. Why doesn't she just _ask_ him about it?" Julie spoke quietly to Luke in between bites of pizza.

"Because he spent their entire first meeting telling her that everyone has an _angle_. And while she has gotten to know him somewhat, it's really only been a few days. So there's no reason she wouldn't think the worst."

Julie turned and stared at him, "Wh- you really have seen this a lot haven't you?"

Luke shrugged, "Yup. I always liked her character. I mean, she leaves and literally a day or two later when he goes to talk to her in New York she's already written and rehearsed a song about him with the band and backup dancers. I know it's a movie, but that's pretty awesome."

She just blinked at him for a long moment, he wasn't even looking at her, but still watching the TV. She shook her head and went back to her pizza, tonight was quite the surprise.

By the time the last song began and the movie was finishing up, everyone was done with their pizza and happily full. 

They playfully argued a bit about the next movie, but ended up watching 'Elf' and then the 'Grinch' before calling it a night.

Bobby gathered Carrie and Flynn, he was giving the latter a ride home. Willie had to wake Alex up and walk him to his room, and Ray just picked up Carlos for the walk home across the street. He nodded at Julie, she was still cuddled up with Luke on the couch, and told her he'd see her in the morning. Reggie waved at everyone as they left, stepping outside with the two puppies so they could have a late bathroom break before bed.

"So you staying with me tonight, Jules?" Luke traced her cheek with his fingers, before tucking a stray curl behind her ear.

She smiled sleepily at him, "If that's okay? It's been a lot of memories of my mom today, and there will be more tomorrow when we get the tree and make cookies and everything. So I told my dad I wanted to stay with you, I sleep better with you holding me when I miss her like this."

"Anything you need, Jules."

They were interrupted as Reggie came back inside with the puppies and locked the door. Fender rushing over to jump on the couch and nuzzle Julie, asking for petting.

"Well, I'm off to bed with Lyric. I claimed her for tonight. You guys good?"

"Yeah, we're good. Thanks for taking the puppies out, Reg. Good night," Luke replied to him with a smile.

He smiled back and slipped into his room with Lyric.

Julie sighed and pulled away from Luke, standing up. "We should go to bed, too," she said as she held out her hand to him.

"Okay, Jules."

They went up the stairs hand in hand, with Fender following them happily.

\------------------

Since they had just been lounging around watching movies, they were both already in comfy clothes, Luke just stripping off his sweatshirt, so they just pulled the covers back and climbed into bed. Luke reached out immediately and tugged Julie close, pressing a kiss to her head. Fender settled himself behind Julie, she hadn't really slept over since he had been adopted, but the three of them had napped together quite a few times like this.

"Are you super tired?" Luke gently rubbed her back.

"Mmmm, kinda. We have a big day tomorrow getting the trees and baking and everything." Julie lifted her head and kissed him, deep and slow.

They finally pulled back to breathe, and Luke sighed, "I will never get tired of that."

Julie buried her face in his chest and nodded, "Me either. Now go to sleep, I need you awake tomorrow."

"You got it boss. Goodnight," Luke smirked into her hair.

\-----------------------------------------------------

Saturday dawned bright and clear but a bit chilly, LA or not, in December even Luke was wearing hoodies with actual sleeves. Julie just replaced the one she had worn with the one he had been wearing the day before, it was the best time to borrow them, she had decided.

Fender had slipped out of Luke's room early, he had heard Reggie get up and since he needed to go outside, he went to join Lyric's potty break.

This morning Julie was the first to wake, normally Luke was up before she was on lazy days. Not that he was really much of a morning person, just she _definitely_ wasn't.

As she slowly woke up, she took a long moment to keep her eyes closed and just enjoy having Luke wrapped around her. He tended to keep her as close as possible, and she had noticed he seemed to be trying to shield her from the world when they lay like this. It was nice, and it did make her feel safe.

She must have moved, although she didn't think she did, but he was suddenly giving her a quick squeeze and rolling onto his back and asking with a yawn, "Good morning, sweetheart. How'd you sleep?"

"How did you know I was awake? I didn't move."

He turned to face her again and grinned, "Your breathing changed. I can almost always tell, even when I'm asleep."

Julie raised an eyebrow, "I don't know whether to be impressed, or a little weirded out."

He laughed lightly and kissed her on the forehead, "Be impressed. I promise I'll only use my power for good."

Luke rolled out of bed and stretched, distracting Julie when his shirt came up and showed a strip of his toned abs since his sweatpants were riding low. 

"Are you ready for this busy, festive day, Jules?" He paused when she didn't reply, glancing down at her, "Jules?"

"Can we stay here for a few more minutes?" She was up on one elbow staring at him with a particular look on her face.

He knew that look.

"Yes, absolutely yes!" He dove back into bed and pulled her into a hungry kiss.

It took them awhile to actually get up, and Luke's shower was a cold one, but he was happily humming as he took it.

\-------------------------------------

It was 10am when everyone was finally assembled in the kitchen at the boys' house and they were hammering out the details of the schedule for the day. It was just the boys (Willie included, of course) and the Molinas. Flynn had something to do with her family, Carrie had a Dirty Candi rehearsal, and Bobby had a meeting.

"Okay, so we head over to the tree lot first and pick out two trees to be delivered, then I'll stop at the grocery store with Reggie and Carlos for the last of the baking supplies and other miscellaneous ingredients. Julie. You, Luke, Willie and Alex will come back here and make sure everything is ready, the box with our tree stand and the new one I got for the boys is in the living room, along with a couple tarps and the tree skirts. So your primary mission is to have both houses set up for when the tress arrive, got it?" Ray glanced around at everyone.

"Um, I have a question?" Luke raised his hand with a look of confusion.

"Yes, Luke?" Ray had a smug, knowing look on his face.

"Uh, don't we only have your SUV? How are we going to split up?"

"Well, I know it's not Christmas _yet_ , but Bobby's present for you boys is outside, how about we go take a look?"

"What?!" "Really?!" "He didn't!"

Willie, Alex and Reggie all bolted to the door, luckily Reggie had taken the puppies out back this morning, or it would have spoiled the surprise.

"For real, Ray? He got us a car?" 

"Yup, Luke. Since there's so many people now, with Flynn and Carrie, and what if Reggie asks Kayla to join us for something? Also, you boys need a vehicle for when you need to go get groceries, or dog food, or whatever, instead of always waiting to ask if you can go with me or borrow mine."

"Let's go see what it is!" Julie tugged on Luke's hand and bounced a little.

The two of them headed outside, Ray trailing behind them and just enjoying how surprised and grateful all the boys had looked at the news. Carlos shook his head and took care of crating Fender and Lyric before following them, it was safer if they were being left at home alone.

There was a brand new SUV in the driveway, a dark navy blue color with all the upgrades. The boys and Julie crawled all over it checking things out for a good 20 minutes, before Ray reigned them in and got everyone back on track.

The trip to the Christmas tree lot went well, Ray gave the keys to Reggie and he just followed behind.

Everyone was in high spirits, the excitement of the new car and picking out trees made all of them a little giddy. Willie grabbed Alex's hand and swung their arms as they wandered through the temporary man-made forest, even if it was a little sparse, considering time had gotten away from them and Christmas was coming up at the end of the next week.

"Hey, Hotdog. This is pretty great, isn't it?"

Alex just shook his head in wonder, "It is. Getting to now feels like a blur, but also perfectly clear at the same time. I'm not sure how any of this works, but I've decided to just let it be. If I try to explain or think too hard about dying, becoming a ghost, Julie seeing us, meeting you, all that awful stuff with Caleb, then suddenly being basically human again, and _you_ being basically human with us? Well, I'd go absolutely insane. So I'm just not going to think about it."

"Okay. That may be the best plan for now. Just don't forget you can talk to me if you ever need to okay, babe?" Willie squeezed his hand and kissed him on the cheek.

"Th- thanks, Willie." Alex blushed, but then glanced around and tugged Willie behind a few trees, cupping his jaw and pulling him in to a passionate kiss. It drove him crazy when Willie was so sweet.

Soon some shouts rang out that could only be Reggie and Carlos, interrupting their private bubble, and they went searching through the trees to find the others.

"These ones! Reggie and Carlos were beaming and gesturing to two trees standing across from each other in one of the makeshift 'aisles' with Ray standing beside them.

Alex and Willie smiled and nodded in agreement as they appraised the choices. Luke and Julie slipped out from another secluded area and enthusiastically praised them, as well.

"Okay, then! Seems like we're all on the same page, so lets get these trees to the register and set up delivery," Ray looked fondly at everyone.

The boys split up to carry the trees to the front and Ray paid, then they split up for their next tasks of the day.

\-----------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Baking cookies will have to wait, this chapter was making me crazy. But I hope it was cute. Next part will probably finish their day and maybe skip to Christmas, we'll see if Juke keeps distracting me from the main moments. Although I did add a little more Willex, too!


	40. Part Quarante

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fluff, then angst, lots of Luke angst with BestDadEver!Ray Also, this is a double update, it got too long for just one chapter.

Part Quarante

\---------------------------------------------------

By the time Ray got back with Reggie and Carlos, the others had accepted the tree delivery and had them in the stands. Julie and Luke were at the Molina's when Ray and Carlos walked in with their half of the groceries, they were doing the baking at the guys' house, but dinner would be done here.

"Luke!" Julie was almost shrieking with laughter as he kept struggling with the lights, which he had somehow managed to tangle up _all around_ himself. "Hold still and let me help!"

"Jules, this is ridiculous, I was just holding them!" His voice came out as a whine, but a thread of mischief ran through it.

"You're a mess, dude," Carlos shook his head and took his bag right to the kitchen.

When Ray caught Luke's eye as he walked in, a tiny wink alerted him that Luke probably wasn't _actually_ all that tangled up. Ray grinned at him, but quickly turned away, hiding the sudden sheen of moisture in his eyes, making for the kitchen. He didn't want to feel this emotional, but it was his first Christmas without Rose too, and he honestly wasn't sure how they would be getting through it without the boys. Especially how Julie would be coping without Luke.

"Hey, Papi! I told Willie and Alex to get the lights on their tree while we did this one. That way we can go over and put the ornaments on while we bake, before coming back over here for dinner and our ornaments. What do you think?" Julie had turned from Luke and was looking at him expectantly.

"Mija, I think that sounds perfect. At least if you ever get Luke untangled. Otherwise, I guess he'll just have to stand there for the next few days and be the tree, we can hang the ornaments on the light strands," Ray laughed at the 'not amused by your joke, dad' pout on his daughter's face, glancing behind her to see Luke swiftly slipping out of the lights like they had never even been on him.

"Hey Jules, it's fine, I got it!"

Ray watched as her eyes lit up with his call, whirling around and squealing in glee at his freedom.

"You did it! Now how tangled up are they after your adventure?" As exasperated as she sounded, the fond undertone couldn't be hidden.

"Not at all, really Jules, check it out."

A quick brush at his eyes with his hand, Ray cleared his throat quietly and started helping Carlos put the groceries away. He missed Rose, but seeing his kids getting through this holiday with laughter and smiles was an incredible blessing. He couldn't wait to bake and decorate the trees with all of them.

\-----------------------------

After getting the lights on the tree (which went much faster now that Luke had finished making Julie laugh), the four of them headed across the street.

"Ugh, finally. We've had our lights on the tree for like 20 minutes. It was Luke's fault wasn't it?" Reggie was lounging in the beanbag chair he still hadn't moved back into his room.

"Dad almost left him there to _be_ our tree, he got all tangled up," Carlos looked up from where he was greeting the puppies.

Alex raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth, but was cut off by Luke, "So! Let's start the cookies and decorating!"

"Okay!" "Yeah!" "Sounds good, kids."

Willie leaned over and whispered to Alex, "What were you going to say?"

"Oh, well, we call Luke the 'cord whisperer' because he can untangle our amp and guitar cords in, like, 2 minutes flat. There's no way he got tangled up in Christmas lights." 

They glanced over to see Julie gesturing and laughing as she described the scene to Reggie, who had asked for details since he was also confused. Luke just watching her with huge heart eyes.

Willie waved a hand and wrapped an arm around Alex, "It was for her."

Alex swallowed hard and hugged Willie tight, burying his face in the crook of his neck.

"You okay, Hotdog?"

"It's really nice to see him so happy, to see Reggie so happy, to _be_ so happy myself."

"Oh." Willie coughed a bit trying to clear the lump in his throat, "I'm really happy too, Alex."

Alex lifted his head and Willie gently kissed him, before pulling back and smiling, "Let's go help make some cookies."

\-----------------

The first thing they did was roll out the sugar cookie dough Reggie had made the day before and use the Christmas cookie cutters that Ray had brought over. 

"Okay, don't forget we can roll the scraps together and make more!" Reggie was the best at rolling the dough out evenly, so they elected him to do that while some of the others cut out the cookies, and some arranged them on the cookie sheets.

Once finished, they got them in the oven and discussed whether to start mixing up more dough, or decorate the tree.

"Why don't Julie, Carlos, and I start working on the gingerbread dough, while you guys work on the tree?" Reggie threw his arms over the siblings shoulders, "Sound good?"

Everyone nodded, and agreed. The gingerbread dough would need to set in the fridge, so it made sense to get it done early, then they could move on to the chocolate drop cookies. They had thought about peanut blossoms, but Alex was allergic to peanuts, and Carlos just liked to steal the Hershey's kisses off the top, so they decided to pass on those this year.

Ray decided to bounce between the tree decorating and the kitchen, enjoying the life and laughter that filled the house. Thinking ahead to going back to their house across the street gave him a bittersweet smile, it would be different without Rose singing carols and twirling Julie and Carlos around the living room. But as he watched Willie spin under Alex's arm, Luke laughing and dodging out of the way as they hung ornaments, he could believe this was still going to be a pretty good Christmas.

\------------------------------

After they finished with the chocolate drop cookies, and made and baked the gingerbread house pieces (only one flour fight broke out, between Reggie and Carlos first, then everyone else for a few minutes), they cleaned everything up. Next heading over to the Molina's for dinner and more tree decorating, Reggie and Ray put together a casserole, and dinner was a loud boisterous affair. As soon as that tree was deemed done, back across the street they went.

"So, the gingerbread pieces are all cooled and ready, now we can put together the gingerbread houses!" Reggie gave Julie and Carlos high-fives, they really thought they had perfected Rose's recipe.

Everyone crowded around and helped sort the walls and the roof pieces, as well as opening the frosting and the candies for decorations. They had decided to make their two houses and the studio, so they broke off into smaller groups to work on getting the structures put together.

"Um, Ray?" Luke rubbed the back of his neck, his signature nervous habit, "Can I talk to you? Alone?"

"Sure, Luke, of course."

"Hey, we're going to take the puppies out, okay? Back in a few," Luke called to everyone. They just nodded and waved him away, caught up in the gingerbread house building.

Luke hooked on Fender and Lyric's leashes and slipped outside with them, Ray right behind him.

They stood in silence for a couple minutes, Ray patiently waiting as Luke organized his thoughts.

Finally, a sigh, and, "My parents want to meet for lunch."

"Oh? Do _you_ want to meet them for lunch?"

Another sigh, "I- I don't know? I mean, I feel like I should, it is Christmas. And- and I did leave right before Christmas, you know, _before_." He paused.

Ray kept quiet, he knew there was more.

"I- I was hoping that, well, that maybe, if it isn't too much trouble... and if it is that's totally fine, I just, I-" Luke looked up at him, eyes wide with uncertainty, "Would you go with me?"

Ray had to swallow hard around the sudden lump in his throat, reaching out and tugging Luke into a strong hug, "If you want me to, I will absolutely be there, mijo. Just tell me when."

Luke sniffled and buried his face in Ray's shoulder with a soft, "Thank you."

They stayed outside a bit longer, regaining their composure and planning a bit, then headed back inside to help finish the gingerbread houses.

\--------------------------

When Julie curled up next to Luke in his bed that night she quietly questioned him, "Did you ask my dad?"

"Yeah. I'm going to call them tomorrow. Sooner I- we, go, the sooner it's over."

She snuggled closer as he spoke, brushing a reassuring kiss in the crook of his neck.

"Goodnight, Jules."

"Goodnight, Luke."

\-----------------------------------

Sunday morning had Luke waking up early and sneaking out of bed, leaving Julie peacefully asleep. He watched her for a long moment from the doorway, disbelieving this amazing girl actually wanted to be with him.

He and Fender slipped quietly downstairs and outside, softly calling to Lyric on the way (who had been cuddled with Alex this time, she liked to rotate each night). As he stood waiting for the puppies to take care of business, he pulled his phone from his pocket and stared at it, wondering if it was too early to call his dad and set up lunch, it was only 7:45 am on a Sunday. Finally he decided he would just leave a message if Mitch didn't pick up.

However...

"Hello?"

"Uh... Dad?"

"Luke! Hi!" Slightly quieter, "I wasn't sure I'd be hearing from you before the new year."

"I- I wasn't going to call, but, well, I think we should do that lunch. It is Christmas time."

The memories of right before Christmas the last time he was alive, the screaming match with his mother in the glow of the Christmas tree, and his silhouette biking away from home, lay heavy and unspoken between them.

"When- when would you like to meet, Luke?"

"Would... I mean, is today too soon?"

"Today? Sure, yes, Luke, that would be fine. Say 11:30 at that restaurant over on Sunset?"

"Yeah. That's fine. 11:30."

"Okay, okay. See you then son."

"Bye, Dad."

Luke hung up the phone and rolled his shoulders, trying to shrug off the tension that was already creeping through his frame in nervous anticipation.

He shot a quick text to Ray, letting him know the plan, and went back inside with Fender and Lyric.

Reggie was up and puttering around the kitchen, "I wondered why I didn't have those two clamoring to go outside when I got up. You want some breakfast? I was going to make omlettes."  
  
"No, I'm- I'm not hungry."

"Are you okay?" Reggie quirked a brow in concern.

"Fine." His phone buzzed with a text of confirmation from Ray, and a question- 'Do you want to come have breakfast over here, kiddo?'

"Actually, Reggie, I'm going to go over and talk to Ray. Thanks, though," Luke released Lyric from her leash, keeping Fender with him as he turned around and walked back out the door.

"What about..." Reggie trailed off a little as the door shut, "...Julie?"

\-----------------------------

"Coffee?" Ray held out a mug right as Luke stepped through the front door.

"Yes, please. Thank you," Luke quickly bent and unhooked Fender's leash before accepting the mug and taking a long sip.

Ray clapped a hand to his shoulder and gave it a supportive squeeze. 

They went to sit at the counter, Luke leaning on his elbows and hunching over his coffee.

"Do you even really want to do this, mijo?"

An incoherent, half-hearted mumble was all that Luke could manage.

Reaching over to rub Luke's back, Ray asked him more specifically, "Is this for you, or is this for them because you feel guilty, Luke?" 

Luke finally raised his head and met Ray's eyes, "Those are the same thing, aren't they? It's for me _because_ I feel guilty and feel like I should do it for them." He paused and looked back down at his coffee. "But I do need to do it. Things were so overwhelming when we had that dinner here. I really thought after the first dinner when Julie came with me to see them, to tell my dad, that things would be different. Except, we were all still in shock, I think."

"And, once that wore off a little, you fell back into the same toxic pattern. Do you think that will happen again when you see them? The phone calls have been okay, though?"

Sitting up a little, Luke nodded, "Mostly. However they've only been with my dad. He says my mom's therapy is going well, he's even gone with a few times, but I can't help but think it hasn't been long enough." Another pause. "And- and, what if _I_ can't help myself from getting defensive? What if _I_ screw everything up, _again_?"

"Oh, Luke," Ray sighed sadly. "You never screwed it up, not by yourself. You're a good kid, you _were_ a good kid. I know you were. But that's exactly it, you were a _kid,_ and you still are. You did something impulsive back then, something rash, but you can't keep holding onto that. I don't want to overstep, but from what I saw, and heard, at dinner that night? You might've been a lot less likely to run away if she had taken even five minutes to actually _listen_ to you."

Blinking back tears, Luke turned into Ray's open arms, fisting his hands in the back of Ray's sweater, hiding his face in Ray's chest as he broke down.

They sat there for a long while, Luke crying and soaking in the comfort from an adult like Ray that he had been denying he desperately needed. He had talked to Ray about some of this stuff before, but it was more surface level. The anniversary of his running away, Christmas, and the request for lunch had been too much.

Ray telling him it wasn't only on him, wasn't only his _fault_ was just enough to shatter his carefully constructed walls, and all the hurt was finally breaking free. 

"I've got you, mijo," Ray felt a few tears of his own slip out. Even after he had defended Luke and he had cried on Ray the night of the dinner with his parents, it wasn't quite the same as this.

Eventually Ray stood up, still holding Luke, and guided him over to the couch so he could lay down and rest. He sat down and set a pillow in his lap, much as he had the last time, tugging Luke down to put his head down on it. 

"I've got you, kiddo, just rest for a while, we don't have to leave for a couple hours."

\---------------------------------------  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Shrugs helplessly* Guess Luke just set up camp in my head again?


	41. Part Quarante-et-un

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More angst, more Luke angst with BestDadEver!Ray Also, this is the second part of the double update, it got too long for just one chapter.

Part Quarante-et-un

\-----------------------

Julie woke up in Luke's bed alone, reaching over and finding nothing but cold sheets beside her. He must have gotten up awhile ago. She yawned and stretched, climbing out of bed and taking a quick trip to the bathroom before stealing his most recently worn sweatshirt and wandering downstairs.

But he wasn't on the couch with his song journal like she figured he would be.

"Reggie? Where's Luke?"

Reggie leveled a serious expression at her from the kitchen table where he was scrolling through recipe ideas on his phone, "He went to talk to Ray. I would give him some space."

Taken aback, Julie blinked at him, "Oh. Why?"

"Because I've seen that look on his face before. This is a Ray problem, Julie, trust me. He'll come find you when he's ready."

Thoughts of his preoccupation with the lunch with his parents ran through her mind and she nodded in understanding, even if she didn't like the thought that he might be shutting her out in favor of her dad.

"It smells good Reg, did you make breakfast?"

"An omelette about an hour ago, but I can make you one, if you'd like?"

Julie grinned, "Yes, I would very much like. Ham and cheese? Please and thank you Reggie."

\----------------------------

Luke had cried himself to sleep pretty quickly once he lay down, and Ray just kept running one hand through his hair, and letting Luke cling to the other in his sleep. Fender had quickly jumped up on the couch and cuddled into Luke's side as soon as he was barely settled, softly whining at the distress he could feel emanating from his person.

"Dad?" Carlos was dressed and coming down the last few stairs.

"Shhhh, mijo. Why don't you go across the street and ask Reggie to make you breakfast? Maybe he'll play Nintendo with you for awhile, too. I have somewhere to be for lunch, so see if he and the others will occupy you until this afternoon, okay?"

"O-kay. Hey, is Luke all right?" Carlos had come over to stand at the end of the couch and caught sight of the older boy.

Ray nodded, but his smile was sad, "He's okay Carlos. Christmas is just a hard time. Can you tell Julie to stay over there with you, also? We just need some time."

"I will," he frowned a little, "Does he miss his parents like we miss Mom? Couldn't he just go see them? I know they kinda had a fight when we had dinner, but..."

"It's more complicated than that Carlos. It's sort of... well, it's his story to tell if he wants to, okay?"

Carlos face was serious as he nodded in understanding, he wouldn't want someone talking about him, either.

"I'll tell them all to leave you guys alone, I promise Papi."

"Thank you, mijo. I love you." 

"Love you too," Carlos called quietly as he went out the front door.

\---------------------------------------

Julie was pestering Carlos the second he arrived, "What's going on, why are you here? I should go over there..."

"No!"

"Wh-what?"

"Dad said you're not allowed to go over there and interrupt. They need some time," Carlos crossed his arms and stared down his sister. 

She narrowed her eyes and stared back for a long moment, before throwing her hands up, "Fine! But I'm not happy about it." She slumped back in her chair at the table, as Reggie offered to make Carlos an omelette.

\------------------------------

It was creeping up on 10 am, and Ray figured it was time to wake Luke up to get ready.

"Luke?" He squeezed the hand holding his, "Hey, kiddo, time to wake up."

"Ugh, Ray?" Luke's voice was rough and scratchy from all the tears, as he blinked his still slightly swollen, red-rimmed eyes.

"Yeah, mijo. Why don't you go upstairs and take a hot shower, I'll get you a change of clothes, and then we can head out for the restaurant?"

"Uhhhh,"he groaned as he tried to bury his head in the pillow he was laying on.

"Hey. Luke, look at me."

A big sigh, and Luke sat up and looked at him, "Yeah?"

"You can still cancel. You don't have to do this if you're not ready."

A faint smile of gratitude passed his lips before he lifted his hands and scrubbed them across his face, "Thanks, but I just want to get it over with. I'm not convinced it's going to go well, though I do think I need to get it done."

Ray eyed him in concern, "Okay. I'm going to let you take the lead, then. And if anything, _anything_ upsets you and you want to go, all you have to do signal me. I'll be off to the side waiting and ready to step in if you need me, I promise."

Luke leaned over and gave Ray a tight hug, "Thanks." Pulling away he stood up, "Guess I better go take that shower now."

Ray watched him go up the stairs, reaching for his phone and texting Alex to bring Luke some clothes, and not to let Julie con him into letting her bring them over. He needed him to take Fender back home, too.

\----------------------------

It was right at 11:30 when they got to the restaurant. Ray patted Luke on the back and pointed to the end of the bar where there was an open seat within sight of the table where Emily and Mitch already sat. Luke nodded at him and took a deep breath, walking over and sliding into a chair across from his parents.

"Hi."

"Hi, baby." "Its good to see you, son."

They sat and stared at each other in awkward silence, until the server came over and asked Luke what he'd like to drink. He quickly ordered a water and thanked her, sighing and deciding to try to start things off.

"So, I'm doing well. As I told Dad, the guys and I adopted two puppies. They're doing great, training has been surprisingly easy. We haven't had any gigs lately, but Flynn does have us set up for an open mic slot somewhere right after the new year," he stopped, the slight grimace on his Mom's face stabbing him in the chest. He raised an eyebrow in question, inviting her to say whatever it was she obviously wanted to.

Emily heaved a sigh, "I'm trying, Luke, really. I just- you know I think in numbers and statistics, and the odds of you actually making it in music... Well it's not a practical, serious career. You can still go to school, find something real to support yourself. The band could be a nice hobby on the weekends."

Mitch glanced between them, shooting an apologetic look at Luke, "I can't exactly disagree with her. I _know_ you should be playing music, Luke, it's important to you. But couldn't you do both? Music can be a pretty uncertain career. We're not saying you should give it up, just..."

Luke woke from his frozen shock at their words and reeled back in his chair as if he'd been slapped. "You really don't get it, do you? You _honestly_ don't understand. I mean, therapy does seem to have helped you stop trying to give me direct orders," he breathed a hollow laugh, "but you're _still_ missing the point."

Emily frowned in confusion, "I guess I _don’t_ understand."

Luke shook his head, "You don't think I can do it. Mom, you saw the video, the one with Julie where you realized it was me. We have lots of, like, watches? Or whatever? Julie says it's a big deal. And you _saw_ it! We're really, really good!"

"Luke, lots of bands have plenty of views on their amateur YouTube videos, it doesn't mean you're going to be the one-in-a-million that gets a record deal. I'm not saying you aren't good, that song Julie brought for me was wonderful, baby. I just don't want to see you disappointed. Music is a great hobby, something you really like to do, but what would be so wrong with finding an _actual_ career?"

Luke closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, taking a couple deep breaths before speaking again, "Music is who I _am_. It's like Julie told you, it's what I was _born to do_. Giving it up, or just making it a hobby would kill me, and it would hurt worse than the first time with the food poisoning."

Both Emily and Mitch sucked in a breath in horror, Emily snapping, "Don't even _joke_ about that! Why do you think I still can't stop trying to make you see reason? If you hadn't been so stubborn about things, you would never have been out on the street and eaten those rancid hot dogs in the first place!"

"I'm not joking. And those hot dogs gave me a second chance, those hot dogs gave me _Julie_. If you can't understand, then I think we're just wasting our time." He shrugged, sadly. "Just, the one thing I've always wanted from you is for you to _believe_ in me, _support_ me in my dream. Since it's obvious you can't do that, I see no reason to keep arguing. I do still love you both, I mean, you're my parents and you always will be, I don't want to leave that unsaid ever again. _I love you both._ Dad, we can still chat on the phone now and then, I just can't do more right now." 

Luke got up and nodded his head at Ray, who had already paid for his half-finished ice tea, having noticed the rising tension at their table. 

"Luke!" Emily stood up and reached for his arm, a stricken look on her face.

"Mom." He stepped back, "Just- just keep going to therapy. Maybe it will eventually help you understand."

"Luke!"

He furiously blinked back tears as he rushed to the door, Ray wrapping an arm over his shoulders and guiding him out to the car.

—————————————

The ride back home was silent, Luke staring blankly out the window, Ray frequently glancing over in concern.

He parked and caught Luke’s arm before he opened the car door to step out, “Do you want to come in for some food before seeing everyone else?”

Luke shook his head, replying quietly, “No. Thank you, though, Ray. Knowing you were there, and that you have my back means more than I can say.”

Ray leveled a serious look at Luke, “Always. Don’t _ever_ doubt that.”

Luke managed a faint smile and a nod, turning and getting out of the SUV.

They both headed over to the boys’ house, Ray figuring he could provide a distraction while Luke went up to his room. And he did, Luke somehow gathering Fender and slipping upstairs before anyone noticed, even Julie. Lucky for him, she had been focused on beating Carlos at Mario Kart, which had ironically been brought out to take everyone’s mind off worrying about Luke.

When Julie did realize Ray was there she flew up from the couch and her eyes frantically darted around in search of Luke.

"Where is he?" She was suddenly right in front of Ray, "Papi, what happened? _Where is he?!_ "

Ray gripped her shoulders gently and looked her in the eyes, "He's upstairs with Fender. It... did not go very well. But he seems like he just wants some space right now, you should give it to him, mija."

Julie narrowed her eyes and bit her lip in frustration, "Argh! Why are you all acting like you know what he needs better than I do?!" She stamped her foot and spun around, racing up the stairs before anyone could say anything else.

Luke was sitting on his bed with his face buried in Fender's fur. He didn't want to see anyone, not even Julie. 'They don't care if I'm happy, they just want me to fit their idea of the son they always wanted, someone who goes to college and gets a boring, _sensible_ , office job. I bet they picture me as a stupid lawyer, or finance manager. They'll probably _never_ see _me_.'

"Luke? Can I come in?" Julie quietly knocked on his door. No matter her display downstairs, she would never actually burst into his room uninvited, especially at a time like this.

Silence, then finally, "I just want to be alone Julie. Please."

She visibly deflated with the rejection, "Oh. Okay." She started to turn away, but stopped, "I'm here whenever you're ready. Even if you don't want to talk. Even if you don't want a _hug_. I can just sit near you in silence, if you want. Just- just let me know."

Julie wrapped her arms around herself and slowly took a few steps back toward the stairs.

Fender whined loudly and wiggled away from Luke's grasp, walking to the end of the bed and looking over at the door and back. 

"What? Do you need to go out? _Now_ of all times?"

" _Woof!_ "

"What?"

Fender cocked his head to one side and again looked at the door and back.

Suddenly, Julie's words actually registered, and more importantly, the tone of her voice. She was hurt he wouldn't let her in. All at once Luke realized that the only thing he really wanted, _was her_. He jumped off the bed and dashed to the door, flinging it open and barely catching himself from smacking right into Julie. She was back in front of his door, one hand raised and about to knock again.

She looked at him with wide eyes, "I decided I wasn't going to take the first 'no' for an answer."

"And I realized I was being an absolute idiot."

"Good. You were." Julie gave him a trembling smile and threw herself into his arms. "I love you Luke, I want to be there for you when you're sad."

He sighed in relief, the feeling of her wrapped around him spreading warmth that drove out most of the dark feelings that had begun to suffocate him. "Jules. _Thank you._ "

Luke tugged her all the way inside and shut the door, moving over to the bed. Once they were laying down and comfortably snuggled together with Fender, he sighed again.

"I love you Julie. So freaking much." 

\----------------------


	42. Part Quarante-deux

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Still not Christmas. Maybe I'll get there by the end of January. Um, Ray and Willie have a short chat, and Reggie has an interesting conversation with Carlos. More Juke fluff- actually a little bit steamy at one point.

Part Quarante-deux

\------------------------

Ray blew out a breath as he watched Julie run up the stairs. Shaking his head a little, he had to laugh. What was he thinking? He didn't need to protect Luke from _Julie_. Obviously the emotional morning had taken its toll on him, too.

"Um, Ray?" Reggie asked tentatively, sharing a look with Alex. "What...?"

"Oh, yeah," he turned and found four pairs of eyes watching him intently with worried curiosity. "Well, like I said to Julie, it didn't go so good. I do think that once he's had some time to process, he'll be okay. Even if it wasn't great, it probably did allow for some closure over the last fight they had, you know, before."

Reggie and Alex glanced at each other and shared a heavy look. Both of them thinking about catching Luke alone at some point in the next day or two and checking in with him. They were family and they were going to make _sure_ he knew he could talk to them.

"Okay, well, I have a few last minutes things to work on at home. You want to hang out here longer Carlos?"

Carlos turned to Reggie with with pleading eyes, "Can we keep playing Mario Kart, Reggie? Please?"

"Of course, little dude!"

They all sat back down and Ray smiled as he left, he really appreciated the way all the guys had taken to Carlos. 

\------------------

As Ray sat back after editing some final photos from his last shoot, he couldn't help but think about Luke. He hadn't really meant to, _exactly_ , but his ears had been focused on Luke's voice at the restaurant in case there was any stress or upset to indicate he needed to jump in. So he had heard what the real issue was between the teen and his parents, and it devastated him.

Ray's parents hadn't been too excited when he decided to major in Photography/Digital Media in college, but they had compromised and he got a minor in Business so he would have all the necessary understanding and skills for the photography business he wanted to start. In their relationship, though, never a day went by without him knowing they were proud of him, and them telling him how talented he was. 

He could only imagine how it felt to never be supported and validated for the _one thing_ , the _one passion_ that you loved, that you _lived_ and _breathed_ which made you _happy_. So, yeah, he might be connecting to Luke pretty deeply.

Sighing, he thought about all the boys. Reggie, well his brain had pretty much already categorized him as part of 'Julie, Carlos, and Reggie' his three children. Alex, oh Alex was a little different. He didn't seem to crave an actual parent in Ray, as much as a 'parental figure- adult that accepts him' which he hadn't really had before. That was fine, he'd probably never call him 'dad' the way Reggie has almost slipped up and done a few times (oh, Ray would _love_ it if he truly started saying it, but Reggie always seemed embarrassed, so he didn't want to push). Alex still felt close now, though, even if there wasn't a good word to describe their relationship. 

Willie, Willie was more like a nephew, Ray decided. He had been a ghost for longer and he had been mostly on his own, so he was more independent. To be fair, he also tended to just be more calm and together than the other boys in general. 

Ray stood up and stretched. 'Enough introspection, time to go see how everyone's doing.'

\-----------------------

Walking in the door across the street, he only saw Alex, lounging on the couch half-asleep with a show Ray didn't recognize softly playing on the TV.

"Hey, Alex. Where's everyone else?" He spoke quietly, not wanting to disturb him too much.

"Ray. Oh, Reggie and Carlos took Lyric to the park, and Julie is still upstairs with Luke and Fender. Reggie and I peeked in a little while ago, to see if Fender wanted to go to the park too, but they're taking a nap. Julie was awake and did give us a quick overview of what Luke told her about the lunch. I really don't get his parents," he scowled and then softened, "Willie's upstairs working on the painting for Luke, he should be done in time to give it to him for Christmas."

Eyes lighting up at the last part, Ray had to ask, "Do you think he'd let me see it? I loaned him some photos of forest scenes to help him get started."

Alex snorted, and smiled at him slyly, "I think he would _love_ to have another opinion. He made a few changes to the original scene. Some surprise touches that have him hiding it from certain people until they can open it for Christmas."

Ray raised an eyebrow in puzzlement, then shrugged and headed up the stairs to Willie's bedroom/studio.

Knocking on the door he whispered loudly, "Willie? Can I come in?"

"Ray?Is it just you?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, sure." Unlocking the door and opening it, Willie waved Ray into his room, shutting the door quickly again behind him.

Ray smiled at him and looked over at the almost-finished painting he had obviously been working on. 

And caught his breath in absolute awe.

The painting was a lush forest scene, as Luke had requested, but it was also so much _more_. Willie had created light and shadow that implied a sunset over the trees, and he had added a winding path through the middle of the forest. Midway down the path were two smallish figures who could only be Luke and Julie. They stood turned to each other, foreheads touching, with their far hands (his left and her right) entwined together at waist level. The figure of Julie had her closer left hand gripping the Luke-figure's right bicep, and his free right hand was cupping her face. She wore a too-big dark grey sweatshirt and leggings with her curly hair down and free, and he wore one of his signature sleeveless t-shirts, jeans, and a black beanie.

Twisted through the trees in the background, painstakingly painted in shades just a tiny bit darker then the background, enough to just barely stand out unless one was looking for it, were two lines of music, the notes obviously written for two voices together.

"Wh-what song is it, Willie?" Ray was blown away.

"I had Alex sneak me a copy of 'Perfect Harmony' and it's the part, 'We're heaven on earth, melody and words, when we're together we're in perfect harmony.' I thought of it after Julie saw the first basic outline for the forest and the first layer of paint, she told me it was really good. When she left this just popped into my head, and I knew I had to add it."

"It's _gorgeous_ , Willie. Like, truly, _incredible_."

"Oh, I- thanks, Ray." He shuffled his feet a bit nervously.

"You really didn't paint much when you were-" Ray winced and awkwardly concluded, "well, _dead_?"

Wille laughed, any tension broken. He was probably the least sensitive about his previous _condition_.

"Yeah, no. Honestly it's a little weird. It's like when I started painting again I was waking up from a dream, like I had forgotten about painting and then it all just flooded back."

"Huh." Thoughts racing through his head, Ray _did not_ like the conclusions he was coming to, "Do you think it might have been from the stamp? If you didn't remember things, or interests, you couldn't want them, and you would stay focused on Caleb's orders?"

Willie blinked, going over things in his mind, "Well, shit. Maybe."

Ray stifled a chuckle, his idea sure wasn't pleasant, but the matter-of-fact way Willie had just swore _was_ a little funny.

Composing himself he apologized, "I'm sorry for mentioning Caleb, I really didn't plan on bringing him up. You've seemed to be doing so well adjusting, but you can always talk to me."

"Oh, I, uh, no. No, it's fine. Well, not _fine_ , but it's over, you know?" Willie shrugged. "And, I have Alex now, and all of you guys, and we're a family. So, yeah, not the best thing to maybe realize, but it's in the past and it could also have just been the fact that I was a ghost for, like, a decade."

"Okay, well, okay. But if anything does start to bother you or whatever, I'm around." Ray clapped hand to Willie's shoulder and gave it a quick squeeze of support. 

"Thanks, Ray."

They both stared at Willie's painting for a long moment.

"' _Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.''"_ Ray murmured softly.

" _Wuthering Heights_. That's exactly what I was thinking of." Willie glanced at Ray with a rueful smile, "I hated that book, only made it a chapter in and then just read the Spark notes. It's an amazing quote, though. It fits them, and in a much less tragic way. And Luke came back to life- _we_ came back to life, so it's a happy ending."

\----------On the way to the park around the same time...-------------

"Um, Reggie? Can I ask you something?" Carlos glanced over at the older boy as they walked to the park with Lyric.

"Sure, little dude! What's up?"

"Why is Luke so upset about his parents? Weren't they really sad when he was dead? But he's back now, so why isn't everyone happy? I know it's personal, but I would be _so_ happy if my Mom came back."

Reggie bit his lip, 'Wow, Carlos, way to ask the hard-hitting questions!' Luckily, when he and Alex had gone upstairs before he and Carlos had left, Julie had answered Luke's door, and given them a whispered summary of what Luke had told her about the lunch. He took a deep breath and tried to figure out how to explain the situation to Carlos.

"Well." Reggie paused. "Okay. Carlos, you know how sad you were when Julie wasn't singing anymore? And your Dad was sad too?"

"Yeah."

"If Luke had suddenly stopped playing music, his parents would have been really happy, _would_ be really happy."

"But- but why? He's so, so _good_ , all of you are, just like Julie! And he _loves_ it just like her! She was so sad when she wasn't playing!"

Reggie threw an arm around Carlos's shoulder, "That means a lot, little dude. And if you haven't told him you think he's good, I bet he would love to hear it. But as to why his parents would be happy if he stopped, it's because they don't think that, even as good as he is, as good as _we_ are- they think he won't ever get a real record deal or be able to make music a career. They think he should go to school and become an accountant or something."

"An _accountant_?! Luke would be a terrible accountant," Carlos scrunched his nose in shock and disgust.

"I know. I agree. But they don't believe he can make it as a musician, and they aren't supportive of him trying."

Carlos stopped, Lyric barking in slight confusion as the leash in his hand tugged her to a stop. "But that's not fair! It's not fair they don't support him. Especially because he's _always_ saying nice things and encouraging everyone else. Do you think that's why he does that?" He started walking again, slowly.

Reggie stumbled a little in surprise, he'd never thought of it like _that_. But... thinking back, Luke really did start getting _so_ into hyping him and Alex around the time he stopped inviting them over to his house. Bobby became part of their group right around then, too, and based on how Carrie figured out who they really were, well, if that ridiculously supportive part of Luke was because his parents were the opposite...huh. 

Carlos looked down, his voice quiet and sad, interrupting Reggie's thoughts, "He's kinda like my Mom was. She always told me and Julie to believe in ourselves, and if we were scared she would believe in us for us." He turned back to Reggie, "She came to every one of my baseball games to cheer me on," a sigh, "until she couldn't anymore."

Reggie closed his eyes, blinking back the moisture that had gathered as Carlos spoke about his Mom, "I bet she's still watching every game, little dude." He squeezed his arm around Carlos's shoulders in a side hug. "If she was anything like Luke, _nothing_ could stop her, you know? Now, what do you say we get Lyric to the park and burn off some of that puppy energy?" 

"Okay, Reggie."

\---------------------------------

That evening they all decided unanimously to just have a quiet night in. Ray had taken Carlos home, they were going to get up early for some last-minute shopping and wanted to get to bed early. Reggie made up some hamburgers for the guys and Julie, and dinner was spent not at the table, as usual, but off in their own rooms and corners.

Julie took Fender out, and picked up plates for both her and Luke, thanking Reggie sincerely before going back upstairs.

"Luke? Are you awake? I brought dinner."

He sat up and stretched, rubbing his eyes, "Yeah, Jules, I'm up. Did Reggie make those?"

Fender jumped up on the bed to lick Luke's hand, which he automatically used to start petting the puppy affectionately.

"He did. And, considering you haven't eaten all day, I brought you two," she leveled a expectant look at him.

Luke gave her a fond, appreciative smile, "I'll eat them. I promise, Boss."

"Good." She handed him his plate and situated herself next to him and Fender on the bed with her own.

"So, my school winter break starts tomorrow. Carrie mentioned that it might be fun to go tour some Christmas lights, she asked Reggie if he wanted to invite Kayla. We were thinking tomorrow evening, since it's only a few days until Christmas," Julie glanced over, grinning as Luke covered his mouth and nodded, having just taken a huge bite of burger.

"Okay, I'm taking that as a yes."

He rolled his eyes and nodded again as he continued to chew.

The conversation lapsed as they both focused on eating their food, Julie finishing slightly ahead of him. She set her plate on the bedside table and grabbed his song journal and pen, snuggling down a bit in the bed.

Luke just watched her, content, as he finished his second burger.

She flipped through the pages a little aimlessly, before pausing and running her fingers over a page with some scribbled lyrics and a few musical notations he had started.

_ There's no need to hide away your feelings _

_ Everyone around can be your saving grace _

_ Even at the times when you're left reeling _

_ Remember that tomorrow is a brand new day _

_ Just keep on heading down the one way track _

_ Where there's no rules to walk, you see _

_ No one can help you if you don't look back _

_ Because the good songs are all you need _

_ Oh we're family _

_ Moving on to brighter days and calmer seas _

_ Studying a new chapter in this book of dreams _

_ You'll always be a family _

_ Oh we are family _

"Luke..."

He swallowed his last bite and leaned over, "Yup. That's the one I've been working on."

"The one that wasn't ready?" She took his plate and absently stacked it on hers on the bedside table. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have..." 

"Hey. Never _really_ not ready when it's you," he wrapped his arm around her and tugged her close. "Unless I'm writing it _for_ you as a surprise, but those don't go in my regular journal."

Julie laughed a little, then stopped short, "Wait. Your _regular_ journal?"

Luke scrunched his nose at her and bit his lip on a smirk, "There may be a special * _Songs for and/or about Julie_ * one I keep hidden."

Her eyes went wide and she couldn't help herself, she caught his face in her hands and kissed him. 

He wrapped his free arm around her and pulled her flush to his chest, deepening the kiss. When they finally parted to breathe, he kissed his way across her cheek and down her neck, to where it met her shoulder. " _Julie..._ " he mumbled against her skin.

" _Mmmmhmm?_ "

"Are you going to stay tonight?"

"Yes," she replied, trailing off into a needy whine, " _Luke, please..._ " 

He lifted his head to meet her lips again, sliding his tongue along the seam of her lips, and tangling it with hers when she eagerly opened to him.

They spent a while making out, and exploring each other a little more than they had so far before. Eventually Luke gentled their kisses and they cuddled together, letting themselves calm down for several long minutes.

"I know we slept a lot today, but I'm still tired, Jules," Luke looked at her with sleepy eyes, happy with their previous active closeness, but with a hint of melancholy lingering from the day.

She shifted a little, tucking his head under her chin, and started running her hand through his hair, "Then go ahead and sleep, Luke. I'm not going anywhere."

His eyes already drifting closed, he tightened his arms around her waist and clumsily pressed his lips to her collarbone, whispering, "Love you."

Julie kissed his head and whispered back, "Love you too."

\----------------------------

The next day Julie and Luke woke up quite early for both of them, grabbing a quick breakfast of Pop-Tarts, they let the puppies out before deciding to head over to the studio and work on some song ideas. Flynn had found the band a gig for right after New Years, which was now only a little under two weeks away.

They brainstormed lyrics and worked on melodies, sharing kisses in celebration when things came together.

Around 10 am, Julie's phone went off, Flynn telling her she _needed_ to come shopping with her and Carrie.

"But, I already have all my shopping done..."

Flynn's voice on the phone was insistent, "Don't care. We need a girls' day, so get ready! Carrie and I will be there to pick you up in an hour!"

"Luke and I were working on some new songs..." Julie trailed off weakly, as the pointed silence from Flynn told her there was no stopping the inevitable.

" _Okay_ , okay. I'll see you in an hour."

"See you!"

Julie groaned and dropped her head to Luke's shoulder, "I love them, but there's a reason I plan Christmas presents in advance and buy them whenever I can, as early as possible. I _hate_ the mall right before Christmas, it's so busy and _crowded_!"

Luke dropped a kiss to her crown, "Jules, just focus on spending time with Flynn and Carrie. Aside from movie night, things have been busy. I know you miss girls' time, and I'm sure they miss you."

She looked up at him with a smile, "Yeah, okay. I suppose you're right. Thank you."

He grinned at her, "So go on! Get outta here! I know you want to shower and get changed if you're going out."

"Only if I get the sweatshirt you're wearing before I leave," she pouted at him.

Laughing, Luke nodded, "You got it Boss. I'll snuggle myself in it extra hard so it's ready for you."

Julie pecked him on the lips in gratitude and dashed out of the studio, into the house, and up to her room to pick out an outfit and take a shower.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song is 'Family' by Scars On 45
> 
> Next up is shopping, and then the Christmas lights- Reggie and Kayla!
> 
> Also, I have decided there is NO WAY I can come up with presents FROM everyone, TO everyone (that would be like more than 90 gifts!). So, aside from a few I already have figured out, Luke to Julie, Julie to Luke, Willie to Julie and Luke (obviously the painting). I would love to hear ideas about stuff you would like to see for gifts, or particular people's gifts for a particular other person, or whatever.
> 
> AO3 was down last night, so FF.net got this chapter first, but now here you go!


	43. Part Quarante-trois

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The mall, lights, fluff, Julie finally gives Luke a nickname (I don't really know Spanish, the internet was my only resource), I'm really tired, here's the chapter.

Part Quarante-trois  
————————————————

Flynn and Carrie picked Julie up, immediately teasing her that she wore Luke's clothes more than he did. She just smirked at them, they couldn't embarrass her when the sweatshirt they were talking about was one he had just taken off of himself and slid over her head with a sweet kiss. A sweatshirt that was still warm from his body heat and smelled like him.

"Okay, girls, so I already made us appointments for mani-pedis, and I have a specific list of last minute gifts I need. Flynn, you have a list, too, right?" Carrie glanced over to see Flynn nod, and quickly focused back on the road. She was the only one of them with her own car, a pink VW Bug. She had picked it out and her Dad had bought for her, for her 16th birthday.

"I already have all my gifts, so I guess I'll just tag along as you two shop," Julie smiled as they both voiced agreement.

"Ooh, I love this song!" Flynn poked at the volume buttons so they could sing along to 'Fearless' by Taylor Swift. 

By they time they got to the mall they were all laughing, and Julie was really glad Flynn hadn't let her say no, and that Luke had encouraged her to go and focus on the girls.

\-------------

They walked into the main mall doors and Carrie immediately directed them towards the escalators so they could get to the salon for their appointments.

They all decided on varying shades of red nail polish, for Christmas. Flynn's was darker, leaning towards maroon, Carrie got a bright candy apple red, and Julie went with a rich Santa-suit red. The three of them relaxed and gossiped in the massage chairs as they enjoyed the highest-tier pampering. 

"Oh, just so you two know, this is all on me today. And I prepaid, so you can't talk me out if it!" Carrie giggled at the inevitable protests from Flynn and Julie, shaking her head.

Once their nails were done and dry, they headed out into the mall. Carrie wanted to run some ideas by Julie for what to get Luke, and Flynn still had to pick up something for her aunt. 

"So, I was thinking a new notebook? But I thought maybe you might be getting him something like that?" Carrie asked Julie as they waited for Flynn who had stopped to purchase a shirt she had decided she couldn't pass up.

"Well, yeah. I bought one and I decorated it, drawings and doodles, memories and things like that. You could get him some more guitar strings, I think he's running low."

"Okay, yeah. I wanted it to be something he could actually use, I feel like he's more likely to appreciate that. He doesn't seem like he needs too much, like, stuff."

Julie nodded in agreement, "You're right about that. Material things don't matter as much to Luke, not like playing music and spending time with us, his family."

Flynn walked back up to them, overhearing the last part, "Although, you may need to rethink that order, nothing matters as much as _you_ , Julie, then the rest of his family, and then playing music."

Carrie gave Flynn a high five as they laughed at the blush spreading across Julie's face, then their looks turned interested. A small, secretive smile was playing at Julie's lips, and they each hooked an arm with her, leaning in and bombarding her with questions.

"It's nothing, really guys! I just, he makes me happy," she bit her lip and tried to clear her mind, she didn't mind gossiping with Carrie and Flynn, but some stuff was private, or at least more private than spilling it in the middle of a crowded mall.

"But-"

"No, it's okay Julie. You don't have to tell us if you don't want to," Carrie cut off Flynn's protest and gave her a pointed look. Flynn was an amazing friend, but with all the time Carrie had been spending with her lately, she had picked up on a few things. 

Flynn was not as confident as she always appeared, and her hidden insecurity tended to spill out in moments of overly pushiness. She _really_ didn't like feeling left out of things, which is absolutely something Carrie could relate to, but where Carrie pretended not to care, Flynn tried to shove her way in. 

Luckily, Julie was just as in-tune with Flynn as always, squeezing her arm where theirs were linked, "I know you want to know Flynn, but first of all, not in these mall crowds." All three of them looked around and giggled a little. "And second of all, I want to keep some stuff between Luke and I for now, okay?"

Flynn rolled her eyes, but smirked with good humor and agreed, at least for now. 

Changing the subject, Carrie steered the other two girls into the music store, "Flynn we might as well get our gifts for Luke while we're here." She consulted Julie and picked out some packets of new guitar strings as advised.

Flynn grabbed some sheet music for Luke as her present, he would need it for transcribing his songs for the rest of the band.

After a stop for smoothies, they got a couple things in a few more stores, and then left the mall to go home. It was already late afternoon and Carrie had some last-minute preparations to do for their excursion to see the Christmas lights that evening.

\-----------------------------------------

"Are you good Flynn?" Carrie had dropped Julie off first, and she wanted to make sure Flynn wasn't upset about Julie not sharing everything about her and Luke.

"Yeah, I'm good, Care. I just forget sometimes that things are different now."

Since Julie had been more caught up with the band, and obviously Luke, Flynn and Carrie had gotten pretty close again. Flynn had confided in Carrie how hurt she was that Julie hadn't told her about the guys right away, and Carrie had talked about it being a little weird that the guys knew so much about her dad and how awkward it could be when he joked with them about shared memories. They had both realized, though, that even if things were different, it wasn't a _bad_ different.

"I know I said this before, but you aren't any less important to her. Her, _our_ circle of friends just got bigger. And she still needs you, you're the one she texted first when she was worried about Luke meeting with his parents yesterday. She didn't think of including me right away, _you're_ the one that ended up adding me to the chat," Carrie glanced over at Flynn quickly before turning back to the road. 

Flynn shook her head and chuckled, "You know, if you ever decide to do something besides music, you'd be a pretty decent therapist, I think."

Carrie shrugged, "I have been to several, and this one I finally settled on that I feel comfortable with is quite helpful. So I take that as a compliment."

"It is, Care, it is."

\---------------------------------

Night rolled around and Reggie was chatting with Kayla as everyone finished eating the pizza they had ordered. Normally he would have cooked, but he was too nervous tonight. He had spent part of the day with Luke and Alex in the studio practicing, it mostly kept his mind off things. They couldn't really jam full out without Julie, but they worked on their parts, and he and Luke tightened up some guitar and bass parts that were still a little sloppy on some of their new songs.

Carrie leaned over to speak to him when Kayla got up to go to the bathroom, "You good, Reg? Things seem to be going well."

"Um, yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Thank you Carrie," he smiled at her in appreciation.

A few minutes later Carrie's phone buzzed, and she announced that their cars were outside. She had asked her dad to arrange two rental convertibles for the night, that way they could all see the Christmas lights easily. They had just been dropped off, and would be picked up early in the morning by the rental company.

"So I planned on us splitting up. Flynn, Kayla, Reggie and I in one car. And Julie, Luke, Alex and Willie in the other."

Luke looked a little doubtful, but Julie squeezed his hand and whispered in his ear, and he didn't object. Carrie had told Julie the plan earlier and they agreed, it would be easier for Reggie to keep to his _current_ life as much as possible if there wasn't a chance of Luke and Alex bringing up old memories and confusing him.

\--------------

Flynn glanced into the backseat, and then caught Carrie's eye with a smile and a raised brow. So far things were going really well, it turned out Kayla was secretly a total 'Star Wars' nerd. Since Reggie had gotten caught up on the movies he had missed, they had a lot to talk about. 

"Wait, wait, wait! I haven't watched the TV show yet! No spoilers!" Reggie put his hands over his ears playfully as Kayla almost spilled Baby Yoda's name.

"Oh! I can't believe you haven't watched 'The Mandalorian' yet! You really need to get on that, and how has his name not been spoiled for you already?"

"I'm very careful." He turned up his nose attempting to look superior, but couldn't keep a straight face and they both dissolved into laughter.

"Hey, I brought some of the Christmas cookies we made this last weekend, would you like one Kayla?" Reggie offered a baggie with a few of each kind.

"Yum! Thank you Reggie! I love sugar cookies," she smiled happily and took a bite.

"Cool. Those are actually my recipe, or well, my grandma's. She gave me her recipe book when I was 12, all handwritten. She would have been amazed by the int-"

"Reggie! Kayla! Look at this house up here!" Carrie narrowed her eyes at him in the rearview mirror.

His eyes went wide at his almost slip-up, 12 for him with his new birthdate was only 5 years ago, his grandma would have known about the internet and how everything seems to be online now, even if she maybe would have still chosen to write it down. Reggie mouthed a quick, _'Thanks!'_ to Carrie, while Flynn kept Kayla distracted for another moment.

"So, what were you saying about your grandma Reggie?"

"Oh, just she liked to keep her recipes handwritten, she was old-fashioned that way. Do _you_ bake at all Kayla?" He quickly deflected the conversation.

Overall, the two of them missed most of the Christmas light displays, but since Carrie's whole plan was to get Reggie to relax and get to know Kayla, she was calling it a win for sure. And she had only needed to interrupt him a couple of times, she was glad he was keeping it together well.

"Ohhh, those are cool!" Flynn pointed to a house that was coming up on Carrie's driver's side.

"Wow, yeah. I really like the illuminated sleigh. Remind me about that later, huh? I want to make my Dad go all out on our house next year," Carrie bit her lip as plans for a Christmas party for next year tumbled around in her head.

\---------------------------

Luke tapped his fingers on the steering wheel of their rental car as he slowly followed Carrie.

"He's fine. Carrie has his back." Julie reached over and took his closer hand, stilling his nervous tapping and linking their fingers loosely (in case he needed it back fast, he _was_ driving).

He darted a look over to her with a soft smile and lifted her hand to press a kiss to the back of it. "I know, Jules. It's just kinda different not being there to look after him myself, if that makes sense?"

She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek in return, "It does. Now check out that house up there, it's so pretty!"

In the backseat Willie and Alex were snuggled together, alternating watching the lights and the adorableness in the front seat.

"You really captured _them_ , you know?" Alex whispered quietly right into Willie's ear.

Willie bit back a proud grin, "Thanks Hotdog." He was really excited to see how they would like his painting, having decided to give it to both of them as their joint Christmas present. And seeing as Julie had spent the last three nights at their house with Luke, Willie was pretty sure she wouldn't mind that it was kinda specifically for Luke's bedroom wall, either.

Alex interrupted his thoughts, "Oooh, look at that display!"

\----------------------------------

When they got home, Carrie enlisted Flynn's help with a few pointed looks and raised eyebrows, and between the two of them they maneuvered everyone except Reggie and Kayla straight inside. 

Normally Luke would have been the first to attempt to peek out the window and spy, but Fender whined from his crate and immediately drew his attention.

"Hey buddy! Did you miss me? Huh? Didja? Oh, you're such a good boy, yes you are! Do you need to go out?" Luke knelt and let the puppy out and wrapped his arms around him as Fender jumped excitedly and tried to lick his face.

"Woof!" 

Julie knelt next to him to let Lyric out, the little girl just as excited to see her family home, but slightly less bouncy. Fender really did seem to channel his own puppy version of Luke's personality and Julie loved to watch them together.

"Hi there girl. How are you doing?" Julie pet Lyric and scratched her behind the ears, Fender may have claimed her and Luke particularly, but his sweet and quieter sister was just as loved. 

"Here Julie, why don't you two take them out back for a potty break?" Flynn handed her and Luke the puppies' leashes.

She nodded with a knowing glint in her eyes, Carrie needed Luke neutralized and the puppies were the perfect diversion. Willie was chill, and Alex would want to spy, but be too anxious to really do it without Luke goading him, so Carrie and Flynn could monitor the end of Reggie and Kayla's group not-date/date without interruptions.

Luke stepped out the back door, still chatting to Fender, and Julie followed him with Lyric.

\-----------------------

"Okay, they're still talking comfortably, this is good," Carrie held the curtain open a sliver of an inch, just enough to keep an eye on Reggie and Kayla's body language. She had promised Reggie she had his back, and she was determined to keep her word, which meant making sure he didn't suddenly tense up or seem stressed out. This was the best way she could think of to give them fairly decent privacy, but still be ready to jump in if needed.

Alex had started pacing after she had glared him away from a clumsy attempt to look out the window himself, but Willie didn't like seeing him so worked up, so he caught his hand and started to pull him upstairs. Alex opened his mouth to protest, but after Willie murmured something in his ear, he closed it and just smiled with a dazed look on his face, and left with his boyfriend.

"You know what Carrie? I am a little sick of being single," Flynn crossed her arms and shook her head as she leaned against the back of the couch, "There are two ridiculously adorable couples in our group, and you might be watching another one happen. So, please, _please_ , can we go back to that one smoothie place at the mall with the cute cashier tomorrow?"

"Oh, oh! We got a hug! But they're coming inside now, so act natural!" Carrie dashed over and sprawled on one of the armchairs in the living room area, easily catching up to Flynn's previous statement and question, "Of course we can go back to that smoothie place tomorrow, their mango-kiwi-blueberry flavor was amazing!"

"Is that the place at the mall? They are really great!" Kayla joined right into the conversation, and Flynn had to admire Carrie, she was pretty excellent at this.

"Right? Flynn wants to go back there tomorrow, you could come with us?"

"Sure! I love smoothies!" Kayla grinned, but then her phone buzzed and she gasped as she looked at it, "Yikes! It's really late, my mom is wondering where I am. Carrie, are you ready to go? You don't mind dropping me off?"

"Absolutely not! Tell your Mom we're on our way. You ready, Flynn?"

"Yup. Wow, it's almost midnight."

"Well, I had a really good time tonight, thanks girls!" Reggie had been slightly freaking out about Kayla hugging him, so he was relieved he hadn't needed to participate in their smoothie conversation.

All three of the girls gave him quick hugs again, and said goodnight, Kayla's mom had already texted again before she could even reply to the first one.

Reggie waved at them and closed and locked the front door. He sighed, it had been fun, and not as stressful as he thought it would be, but now he was _tired_. He turned and went to his room to go to bed.

\-----------------------

"We should really get a fence around the yard this spring, shouldn't we?" Luke slipped his arm over Julie's shoulders and tugged her close, resting his head against hers as they waited for the puppies to do what they needed to do.

Julie sighed and relaxed into him, sliding her own arm around his waist, "It would be really nice for the puppies, and on hotter days you wouldn't need to walk them all the way to the dog park. You could even set up a little kiddie pool they could cool off in when you play with them out here."

"Ooh, now _that_ is a brilliant idea, Jules! I better write that down somewhere before we go to bed tonight, or I'll probably totally forget it."

"Mmhmm, don't worry, I'll remind you," Julie was dozing off on his shoulder, still standing up. Her sleep schedule was all messed up from their long nap the day before, then going to sleep early, getting up very early for her, and now it was midnight. 

Luke moved his arm down to settle more securely around her waist and keep her upright, but noticing the puppies were done and looking up at him expectantly, he nuzzled her head with his nose, "Come on Jules, let's get you to bed."

"Hmmmm, _sí_ _, mi alma._ " 

She let him lead her, she was barely still awake, and they were halfway inside the house before he really registered she had just called him something in _Spanish_ , and it was both incredibly endearing, and _hot_. 'Does she feel anything like this when I speak French? Because that is _going_ to start happening more often now.'

Luke took the leashes off the puppies, Julie managing to wake up slightly and lean against the wall while he hung them up and came back. Lyric slipped away into Reggie's room, and Fender followed as Luke wrapped his arm back around Julie and helped her up the stairs to his room. He stepped into his bathroom and swapped out his jeans for sweats, and Julie took off his sweatshirt before crawling into bed. She didn't need one when she stayed with him, he was a literal furnace and he _really_ loved to cuddle.

She was almost asleep with Fender snuggled by her feet, when he slid in next to her, "Jules? What does _'mi alma'_ mean?"

Julie buried her face into the crook of his neck, her murmur barely intelligible, _"Mi alma..._ my soul. _"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully Christmas next.


	44. Part Quarante-quatre

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, this just really got away from me. Fluff, heat, more fluff, tiny bit of angst, more fluff, band stuff.

Part Quarante-quatre

————————————————-----

Luke woke up first in the morning, as he tended to do. He noticed Fender was gone, Reggie must have cracked the door open and called the puppy to go out and to eat breakfast, leaving Luke and Julie to sleep. It was a fairly common occurrence, since Reggie was almost always awake before Luke, and Fender would be ready to go out for his morning potty break when he stopped by to get him. 

Lying still for several long moments just savoring the feeling of holding Julie in his arms, Luke remembered her mumbled words as she fell asleep the night before. He hadn't realized how much he really wanted her to have a nickname for him, something that was just for _her_ to call him.

He called her a few things, Jules, boss, wrecking ball of talent, and even the love of his life that one time in French. But she had never really called him anything but his name, at least nothing that he could think of that _mattered_ as a nickname. 

Maybe his weren't quite the same as _mi alma_ (his heart sped up just at the thought of the way it had rolled off her tongue), but they were always infused with his feelings for her when he said them. Of course now he was planning to go for the French endearment that had been sitting on his tongue recently, which he just hadn't used quite yet.

He tensed slightly in anticipation as he felt Julie's breathing change, she would be waking up any second now...

"Hi." 

She blinked at him in bemusement, she was barely awake and he was radiating energy, even as he lay almost completely still next to her.

"Uh, hi?"

He flashed a beaming grin at her and ducked his head, kissing her slow and deep. 

'Not really sure what this is about, but it's a fantastic way to wake up!' Julie thought as she let herself sink into him, just enjoying the feel of his lips against hers and his arms surrounding her.

When he eventually pulled back, she blinked at him again, "Not that I'm complaining in _any_ way, but, what's up with you this morning?"

He spoke quietly and punctuated his answer with kisses across her face, "You." Left cheek kiss. "Gave me." Right cheek. “A _nickname_." Forehead. "Last night." The tip of her nose.

Julie's brow furrowed in confusion and she started to open her mouth, she didn't remember...

"In _Spanish_ ," he pecked her on the lips this time.

A hazy memory of her translating something in Spanish for him as she fell asleep surfaced, "I- _Oh_." She blushed and looked flustered, that term of endearment was kinda _a_ _lot_.

His face turned a bit uncertain at her reaction, "Did- did you not mean it?" A look of distress and sadness began to creep into his eyes and his arms loosened around her.

"No! I mean, no, _of course_ I meant it!" she fisted one hand in his shirt and kept him close, "I _meant_ it, Luke."

With that, he relaxed and a small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, "Then say it again. Please."

She sighed, smirking at him, "I didn't know you _wanted_ me to give you a nickname? Are you _sure_ about this?"

He looked at her very seriously, "Julie. _Mon coeur. S'il te plait, je veux l'entendre de ta bouche._ "

Oh. 

_Oh._

His use of French, his tongue curling around the words slowly, his voice turning softer, rougher. She understood now, she _definitely_ understood now.

"Luke. _Eres el amor de_ ** _mi alma_** _._ "

His eyes flashed with heat and he rolled over abruptly, laying half on top of her. Leaning his head down, he kissed her hard, taking advantage of her gasp at the move to deepen the kiss. The Spanish was hot, but honestly, it was the nickname that really made him crazy.

He finally pulled away, both of them needing to breathe. 

Luke kept his eyes shut, seeing her under him as she was catching her breath seemed way too tempting. Except she apparently had other ideas, and he shuddered as she ran her hands down his chest and snuck them under the hem of his t-shirt.

"Luke? Can I...?"

He frantically nodded, his shirt had come off before when they had made out, and he had done some exploring of his own over her shirt. This time felt like more, though, and he was proven correct as she tugged his shirt off and then pushed him over onto his back to hover over him herself.

"Look at me Luke."

He opened his eyes and met hers steadily.

"I love you, you know? And while I'm not ready for _everything_ , I am ready for _more_ ,” she kissed his chest over his heart. 

Luke pretty much stopped breathing, he _loved_ her. 

He reached for her, guiding her down into a hug, shuddering again just at the feel of her in his arms, "I love you Julie. And, I want to be with you as much as you're ready for and nothing past that, okay? I spent so long not even being able to touch you at all, that honestly just holding your hand makes me happy." He pressed a kiss to her temple, since her face was nuzzled into the crook of his neck.

"Just holding your hand makes me happy too. But I'm very sure a little more will also make me happy. So please, _mi alma._ "

An involuntary groan escaped him at her use of the Spanish endearment, and he rolled them back over and landed his lips on hers once again. One of his hands held him over her, and the other trailed from her hip up her side, slipping under her shirt on a languid path of exploration. Her hands glided along his sides and over his chest, sliding up around his neck to keep him close as they kissed.

\----------------------------

It was quite a long while later that they finally got up for the day, Julie's phone having eventually started buzzing with several successive texts from Carrie and Flynn, and pulling them out of their cozy bubble. 

The two girls were talking (unfortunately in group chat that included Julie) about how they were going to interrogate Kayla about Reggie when they got smoothies slightly later in the morning. 

Julie sighed as Luke kissed her on the forehead and went to take a shower, she sent her own message in the chat that she would try to talk to Reggie about how he felt, and switched her phone to silent. Today she just wanted to spend some time with her band, well, and Willie and Carlos. Maybe her dad if he wanted. Tomorrow was the day before Christmas Eve and they were planning to rehearse in the studio most of the day, practicing a couple of the new songs she and Luke had written.

Luke stepped out of the bathroom fully dressed, but still rubbing a towel over his hair, "All yours, _mon coeur._ "

Her heart tripped in her chest, he had translated that for her after he called her it again amidst everything, it meant 'my heart' and she thought it might fast become her favorite nickname from him. She nodded and grabbed the clothes she had laid out from her small clothes bag. 

She had run back over to her house on Sunday when he was seeing his parents with her dad and packed a few things. Since she was on winter break she wanted to spend as much time with him as possible, and that meant staying over so she could sleep with him cuddled around her at night.

_“_ Thanks, _mi alma."_ She smirked as she dodged past him into the bathroom, breaking into laughter as she shut the door, closing it on his whine of 'Jules!'. The awareness of how they affected each other made her shiver happily as she got undressed for her shower.

\-------------------------------------

After a late breakfast/early lunch, Julie texted her dad and invited him and Carlos over for a last afternoon of board games and hot chocolate. He quickly accepted, and he and Carlos showed up shortly after. Julie had soft Christmas music playing, and Reggie had a big batch of hot chocolate ready, with optional toppings set up by the stove. There were the traditional marshmallows, but also candy canes, and cinnamon sticks.

They all played ‘Apples to Apples’, then broke off to play a few separate games. Willie, Alex and Carlos went with ‘Uno’, and Reggie asked Ray to play checkers with him. Julie and Luke worked on a puzzle, sharing whispers and quiet laughter.

Something was different that afternoon and Ray couldn't quite put his finger on it. Julie and Luke were being extra _close_. It was like they _had_ to have at least one point of contact at all times, sitting with their thighs pressed together, or her leaning on him with his arm around her, or a hand on the other's knee, even just hands clasped with fingers entwined.

It also wasn't more _physically_ intimate than usual, not really, and Ray was puzzled over what exactly he was picking up on. As he observed them surreptitiously, he finally caught the end of one of Julie's whispers in Luke's ear. 

_"_ Mumble, mumble _... mi alma."_

Luke just grinned, looking at her like she had _invented_ music, and Ray couldn't stop himself from gasping quietly out loud.

Luckily no one really heard, although Reggie did give him a quick look and a raised eyebrow.

Ray stood up from the chair he was sitting in, and sipping his hot chocolate. Muttering something about getting a refill, he blindly wandered into the kitchen and stared out the window. A memory flooded his mind, and he let it wash him into the past.

\--------Ray's memory---------

He was dating Rose and she had come to dinner at his parents house, one of many times, but as she left he had kissed her goodbye and called her _mi amor_ for the first time. His abuelo had laughed, and when he shut the door behind Rose and turned to look at him quizzically, the old man only smiled and told him the _'magic of the Molina's lived on'_.

Now, that made Ray curious and he went to sit with him in the living room, the man was older and could get confused at times, but this was surprisingly the most clear-headed Ray had seen him in awhile.

"You're going to marry that girl, nieto." He settled back in his chair, "Let me tell you a little secret about our family. When we Molinas find the person we are meant to be with forever, well, we give them a name, a Spanish endearment right from our heart. It usually just slips out at the most mundane moment, but that's how you know it's the real thing."

Ray blinked at him, "Wh- really?" 

His abuelo nodded, a nostalgic look taking over his face, "Sí. I said it with your abuela when we were out for a walk, she asked if we could get ice cream and I said, 'Of course, _mi cariño_.' When I got home and told my papi, he gave me my mama's engagement ring. He told me I would need it, since the magic had found me my perfect person. Mi hermana was the same, but she was always embarrassed about her story. Apparently she called her boyfriend _'mi sol'_ for the first time during an argument." He laughed a little at the memory of her telling him about it.

"Wow.What- what about my papi?" Ray glanced into the kitchen, where his parents were doing the dishes from dinner, playfully nudging shoulders, his dad sneaking a kiss onto his mom's cheek and making her laugh.

"Oh!" His abuelo laughed, "They came to dinner one night, and halfway through dinner he asked her to 'Please pass the salt, _mi vida_.' I talked to your abuela and I gave him the ring the next day."

\--------Present------------

"Ray? Are you okay?" Reggie tentatively put a hand on his arm, snapping him out of the past.

"Huh? Oh, Reg. Yeah, yeah. I'm good."

Reggie hesitated for a second, "Um, but you're crying?"

Ray lifted a hand to his face, finding his cheeks wet from silent tears. He closed his eyes, a picture of Rose waving goodbye to him as he stood at the door that night playing from his memory. He blew out a shaky breath, and reached out to pull Reggie into a hug.

He went willingly and hugged Ray tightly back, not sure what was wrong, or not wrong? Maybe they were happy tears? But either way, if Ray wanted a hug, Reggie was more than happy to give one.

"Thank you, mijo."

"Yeah, of course. You're welcome, Da- um, I mean..." Reggie tried to pull away, a blush creeping across his face.

Ray tugged him close again, "Reg, you know you can call me 'Dad' if you want to? I would actually really like it. I'm grateful and proud that you think of me like that."

"Are you sure?" Reggie sniffled, hopeful.

"I am _completely_ sure, mijo."

"Then, then, okay. _Dad._ " He pressed his face to Ray's chest and mumbled happily, "This is the best Christmas ever."

Ray ran a hand over Reggie's hair, "Yeah, I think it is going to be pretty good." 

He decided not to say anything to Julie right now. The 'Molina magic' had happened, and whether it was truly real or not, whether he told her or not, it wouldn't change anything. He had seen her and Luke together, they were inevitable, even before Julie spoke the magic out loud.

\-------------------------------

When Ray and Reggie sat back down with everyone, Alex looked up and narrowed his eyes at the wide smile on Reggie's face.

"What happened?"

The rest of the group's attention was caught and all turned to Reggie expectantly.

"Um, well, I-"

"I told Reggie he could go ahead and call me 'dad' if that's what felt right to him," Ray could tell Reggie was a little unsure how to say it, so he went ahead and pulled the suddenly intense focus onto himself.

"What? That's great!"

"I knew you kept almost calling him that!"

"That's so nice of you Ray!"

"Papi, did you just unofficially adopt another brother for me?" Julie giggled and jumped up with Luke, as everyone took a turn to hug both Reggie and Ray.

" _REGGIE!_ You're like my real big brother now! This is _so cool!"_ Carlos waited and went last, practically knocking Reggie over as he threw himself at him for a big hug. 

"Yeah, Carlos! It is so cool!" Reggie fiercely hugged the younger boy back in happiness.

They ordered out for dinner that night, Reggie was going to be cooking a lot the next few days, so they wanted to give him a break. They played board games into the evening, switching the Christmas music to movies when the food arrived.

\-------------------------------

The next day was all about rehearsing. They ran a song Luke had started writing after Julie's birthday, she had helped him finalize the melody and feel, and rearrange some lyrics. It was called 'I've Got You', and Julie sang the intro, everyone harmonizing through the first bridge, Julie and Luke took the second verse, everyone back together to repeat the chorus, then Luke taking the third verse, and everyone finishing out with the chorus again.

_The world would be a lonely place_

_Without the one that puts a smile on your face_

_So hold me till the sun burns out_

_I won't be lonely when I'm down_

_'Cause I've got you to make me feel stronger_

_When the days are rough and an hour seems much longer_

_I never doubted you at all_

_The stars collide, will you stand by and watch them fall?_

_So hold me till the sky is clear_

_And whisper words of love right into my ear_

_'Cause I've got you to make me feel stronger_

_When the days are rough and an hour seems much longer_

_Yeah but I've got you, oh to make me feel better_

_When the nights are long they'll be easier together_

_Looking in your eyes, hoping they won't cry_

_And even if they do, I'll be in bed so close to you_

_To hold you through the night and you'll be unaware_

_But if you need me I'll be there_

_Yeah, I've got you, oh to make me feel stronger_

_When the days are rough and an hour seems much longer_

_Yeah and I've got you to make me feel better_

_When the nights are long they'll be easier together_

_Yeah but I've got you_

"Wow. You guys are going to be a huge hit at the club I booked you at after New Years!" Flynn stepped through the studio doors with Carrie right behind her.

Luke beamed, "Yeah. Julie is killing it, right?" 

"Luke! We're _all_ doing awesome today. Reggie, your harmonies are on point! And Alex, every beat is perfect!"

"Yeah, _Luke_ , we were all awesome!" Reggie teased him a little.

He just shook his head fondly, "You know I think two were killing it, come on Reg."

"Can we hear another one?" Carrie spoke up eagerly. She may have been a little jealous before, but after talking to her dad she knew that they had different enough sounds, so it wasn't really a competition between them and Dirty Candi. She was happy to go back to cheering Julie on, and she could admit Julie and the Phantoms were really good.

"Sure, let's do 'Avalanche'?" Luke glanced around at everyone, his eyes landing on Julie for final confirmation.

She grinned at him, that was one of her favorites of their new songs. It actually featured him more than her and she could admit it, she liked watching him sing lead for it.

_Eighteen thousand-year-old soul_

_Midwest shooting star_

_In the days she waits_

_But she moonlights rock 'n' roll_

_Playing a raindance with her guitar_

_Sometimes you only get one chance_

_You got a look in your eyes (Your eyes)_

_I knew you in a past life_

_One glance and the avalanche drops_

_One look and my heartbeat stops_

_Ships pass in the night_

_I don't want to wait 'til the next life_

_One glance and the avalanche drops_

_One look and my heartbeat stops_

_Last call_

_And everybody's watching_

_Her voice rings out like a storm_

(Julie sang the next few lines solo, Luke had told her they needed to highlight her 'wrecking ball' voice for this part.) 

_Sometimes the past_

_Echoes in the future_

_Started long before we were born_

_Sometimes you only get one chance (Oh)_

_You got a look in your eyes (Your eyes)_

_I knew you in a past life_

_One glance and the avalanche drops_

_One look and my heartbeat stops...._

A few more repeats of the chorus and a short bridge in between and they finished out the song. Carrie and Flynn had both ended up leaning on the piano (Julie was using her keyboard), and they applauded loudly. 

"Whoa. You switching things up a little for that one is _genius._ It gives you so many more options for your sound!" Flynn snapped out of it first and started bouncing in glee.

Carrie chuckled to herself, yeah, they were good. _Really_ good. Julie was a powerhouse of talent, but even putting her on backing harmonies, with Luke front and center, it still gave the band a rich sound that stood out.

———————

They rehearsed the rest of the afternoon, then had a nice family dinner. Flynn and Carrie stayed to eat, and Bobby even came over to join them as well.Flynn would be celebrating with her family the next few days, and Bobby and Carrie were going to have a quiet holiday at home, so they had all brought their presents to go under the tree tonight. They were also given all their presents from the band and Willie, Ray, and Carlos to take and open on Christmas at home themselves.

Everyone went to bed happy and excited to spend more time together, with a little bit of anticipation over presents, as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, I was reading this over again and I realized a teeny, tiny part of this was possibly unconsciously inspired by a fic by Ephemeral_Joy that I read, so this is a shout out. I love all their Juke fics, if you haven't read them, you should. Actually, just read EVERYONE's Juke fics, I may have missed some other unconscious inspirations, but I think sometimes I see simultaneous versions of similar ideas pop up too. That's what can happen with fanfiction! 
> 
> Seriously, though, I've read a lot of the Juke fanfics on here and they are all just REALLY good. I'm in awe of my fellow writers, and it's so surreal to get comments from people telling me they are enjoying this fic. I'll say it again, I started this as a simple one-shot, practically the first thing I'd written in YEARS, and I am now creeping up on 50 chapters, I'm just stunned.
> 
> Songs are:  
> 'I've Got You' by McFly  
> 'Avalanche' by WALK THE MOON
> 
> Next chapter is FINALLY Christmas Eve!!!


	45. Part Quarante-cinq

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Whew, FINALLY Christmas.

Part Quarante-cinq

—————————————————

Christmas Eve was bright and clear, and everyone gathered in the living room at the boys’ house. Ray, Julie and Carlos had discussed it, and they agreed to do Christmas Eve there, and Christmas Day at the Molina’s. It felt right to reinvent some traditions, while still keeping other ones the same. 

Ray pulled Julie into a tight hug with him and Carlos when she walked over to greet them, the three of them just huddling together for a long moment. Alex hugged Willie, and Luke threw an arm around Reggie for a side hug as they looked on. The grief hung heavy in the air, but when Lyric sneezed over her breakfast, it lightened to a more manageable level as everyone chuckled gently at the puppy.

Willie smiled at Carlos and asked, "Hey little dude, you want to play some Nintendo with Alex and I while we wait for Ray and Reggie to whip up some food?"

"Sure! That would be fun Willie!" He bounced excitedly as he turned back to Ray, "Can we have pancakes Dad, please?"

Ray exchanged a quick look with Reggie and reached out to ruffle Carlos's hair, "Yeah, we can have pancakes mijo."

He and Reggie headed towards the kitchen, discussing what else to make to go with the pancakes.

Luke glanced at Julie, observing her slightly distant gaze, and sprawled down on the couch. He caught her hand and pulled her down on top of him, "Let's just watch them play Jules, hmmm?"

She focused in on his face for a moment and pecked him quickly on the mouth, then lay her head on his chest over his heart and relaxed with a sigh. It was so strange not to have her Mom there, but she had decided she was going to set that aside for now and just be with her family today and tomorrow, as much as she possibly could. 

Fender and Lyric jumped up on the couch next to them, Fender right near Luke's head, and Lyric down by their legs, both snuggling close. Luke held her close with one arm and stroked his other hand through her hair, lulling her into a comfortable daze and quieting her thoughts.

By the time Ray called them for brunch (it was almost 11 am, so closer to lunch then breakfast due to sleeping in that morning), Carlos had beaten Alex and Willie a few times at Mario Kart, and Luke and Julie had actually fallen back asleep. They both grumbled at having to wake up, but the bacon that had been cooked to go with the pancakes was quite the incentive to get up.

Brunch was lively, but not crazy, everyone kept taking turns drifting off into their own thoughts. Bittersweet musings about how much Rose would have loved to be there ran through Ray's mind, Julie's as well. Alex had some nostalgic memories of Christmases with his family _before_ he came out, and then some less than pleasant ones from _after_.

Reggie wistfully imagined how nice it would have been to have a Christmas like this instead of the yelling. Luke obviously thought about his parents and their lack of understanding, otherwise maybe he would have seen them today and exchanged gifts and hugs. But that wasn't going to happen this year, and that was okay, having _this_ family around him was everything he needed. 

Willie was just excited, he had been a ghost for a long time. Even though he had some hazy memories of basically normal, happy Christmases with his family before he died, he hadn't celebrated a Christmas since. When he died he had come back as a ghost pretty much right away and Caleb had found him. 

Caleb didn't celebrate any holidays at the Club, and it was kinda easy to see why. Holidays would denote the passing of time, and Caleb liked to keep _time_ out of his Club as much as possible. He loved big parties, but they were always random themes, like the Titanic one. No Christmas, no Fourth of July, not even Halloween. So this Christmas Willie couldn't help but enjoy whole-heartedly.

\-----------------------

They spent the majority of the rest of the day lounging around, chatting and playing games, Reggie and Carlos in charge of keeping Christmas movies playing in the background. Julie got up around four and went into the kitchen to start the enchiladas they were having for dinner, Luke trailing after her to sit at the table and scribble in his song journal as she cooked.

"Hey Jules, what about this? _'Don't give up, keep on taking chances. Put in time, till you get it right. Winding up, swinging for the fences...'_ "

"' _...won't go down without a fight.'_ "

A soft breath, "I love you."

Julie snickered, "That's an interesting next line."

Luke laughed and scrunched his nose at her, then went back to writing. 

A little while later she slid the enchiladas in the oven and sat down next to him, resting her head on his shoulder and reading over what he had so far.

_ ‘So here we go, and we ain't gonna take it slow.  _

_ We're ready now to touch the sky. _

_ This must be how it feels to fly….. _

_My head in the clouds so high._ ’

"That last line is a little off, Luke."

He dropped his face into her hair and groaned, "I know. You got anything?"

She tugged the journal closer and stole the pen from his hand, tapping it on the page and closing her eyes.

Finally her eyes popped open and she grinned, "Got it!" She scratched out his line and rewrote underneath it, "' _I'm on cloud 9, I'm on cloud 9. This must be how it feels to fly.'"_

A pause, then, "I love you."

Julie giggled and swatted his chest, "Stop it. That line still doesn't fit with this song, silly."

Luke pressed a kiss to her temple, "It fits every song in my other journal."

She squeaked at that, he liked to bring it up whenever he wanted to fluster her since she continued to be unsuccessful in her attempts to get him to let her see it.

They wrote for a little while longer, until the timer went off, signaling dinner was ready.

\---------------

After a nice meal with everyone teasing possible hints on gifts to each other, they all gathered again in the living room, ready to open presents.

Carlos was in charge of handing them out, as he was the youngest, and he started with Tia Victoria's presents for everyone to open at once. She was coming for dinner tomorrow, and looking forward to the meal Reggie had planned.

"Oh, these are great!"

"Just like every year, fun pajamas for everyone to wear tonight and for opening stockings tomorrow! Oh, she even remembered what I said and turned yours into shorts Willie!" Julie beamed at how happy the boys looked at being included in the family tradition.

More presents were passed out and opened, until Carlos hesitated a little with one. 

"Um, Luke?" 

"Yeah, buddy?"

"I- um, I asked Reggie a little about, about your- your family, and I wanted to give you this to remind you that we're all your family now, and we all believe in you. Even- even if maybe they don't." Carlos held out the slightly messily wrapped present, and Luke took it in suddenly shaky hands.

He took a deep breath and tore off the wrapping paper, slowly uncovering the back of a hinged double 16x20 picture frame. He turned it over and opened it once it was free and gasped softly.

On one side it was a framed collage of quotes about music, such as:

_ 'Music, once admitted to the soul, becomes a sort of spirit, and never dies.' -Edward Bulwer-Lytton _

_ 'Music in the soul can be heard by the universe.' - Lao Tzu  _

_ 'Don't give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong.'-Ella Fitzgerald  _

On the other side it was a collage of notes from everyone, cut out and arranged together around a photo of all of them taken at Thanksgiving. Ray's clear handwriting in the top left corner stating, _'I always have your back, kiddo. -Love, Ray'_ had a few tears escaping Luke's eyes. Other short notes from everyone, even including Flynn and Willie made his breathing hitch, but it was Carlos's note in the bottom right that made him muffle a sob and yank the younger boy into a tight hug as he blindly passed the frame over to Julie next to him.

_ 'You're awesome, Luke. Thank you for helping my sister sing again. I'll always believe in you no matter what.  _

_ -Love, Carlos' _

Everyone blinked back sudden wetness in their own eyes at the scene.

"Th-thank you Carlos. You have no idea how much I needed this, little dude."

"You're welcome. You encourage everyone like Mom used to, and I wanted to do the same for you." He paused and squeezed Luke a little tighter and his voice dropped to a whisper in his ear, "Will you start coming to my baseball games? Mom used to come to all of them and it would be nice to have someone cheering for me like she used to."

"Send me the schedule, I will be there for _every single one_ kid."

They finally pulled apart and Luke wiped a hand over his eyes, taking the frame back from Julie and holding it close to his chest. Julie reached out and hugged her little brother, she had been happy to help gather the notes from everyone and seeing the final result, not to mention Luke's reaction, had her so grateful for Carlos's thoughtful idea. 

Ray cleared his throat, and coughed a little, he had been just as affected, but knew Luke would probably appreciate a diversion of attention from himself.

"Why don't we take a quick break and get some hot chocolate refills and some more cookies, huh?"

Everyone agreed, it gave them time to compose themselves, before they settled back in to open more presents.

Willie got gift certificates to a skateboarding store, and also an art supply store. Reggie got a few more Nintendo games and some bass strings. Luke opened his guitar strings and blank sheet music paper from Carrie and Flynn, respectively.

No one had quite know what to get for Ray, but eventually they decided on some new board games to play with the family. 

Carlos got a new baseball glove, and also Reggie gave him a note 'To redeem for bass lessons' that went with a bass that came from the rest of the guys after being cleared with Ray.

"Okay, so this is actually for you _and_ Julie, Luke. It is a forest scene like you asked, but I added a little bit more to it..." Willie pulled the sheet off that was covering his painting.

Alex and Ray were the only others who had seen the finished product, and the reveal was met with amazed gasps.

"Whoa." Luke stood up and stepped closer to see the details better.

"Willie," Julie followed Luke over and rested a hand on Willie's arm. "When, what, _how_ did you even…?"

"I thought of it after you saw the first outline and layer of paint, it just popped into my head. I had Alex sneak me a copy of your 'Perfect Harmony' sheet music, and I added the music lines in after I got the figures just right."

"It's _gorgeous_. I was right, I knew you'd be awesome at this," Luke's smile was a tiny bit smug, but was mostly awed and pleased.

"Thanks," Willie flushed and ducked his head, Alex wrapping an arm around him in a quick side embrace of support and pride.

Reggie shook his head and muttered, impressed, "You certainly captured the chemistry."

"He did," Ray watched happily. "So, do we have anything else left Carlos?"

"Um, oh, here! This is Julie to Luke, and a little one from Luke to Julie."

They both retreated back to the couch to sit and open them, turning slightly to face each other.

Luke unwrapped a new song journal, this one a journal-size three-ring binder with loose leaf paper inside. The cover was decorated with doodles in a familiar style he recognized from Julie's shoes and microphone. There were three cute little ghosts, one with a bass, one with drumsticks, and one with a guitar and beanie. There was also a dahlia, a small cupcake, and several other things.

He traced over it with his fingertips, and she urged him to open the cover. Inside were the lyrics of 'Perfect Harmony' written out in careful calligraphy, signed by Julie with room for his signature next to hers.

"I thought we needed a new one, a sturdy one that we can keep adding paper to, and never run out of space."

Looking up at her with adoring eyes, Luke beamed, "I love it Jules. Thank you." He leaned over and kissed her quickly, "Open yours now."

Julie tore the paper off the small box and opened it. A new charm for her birthday bracelet was nestled inside, a small delicate dahlia, gold with purple overlay on the petals.

"So you can remember your mom is always with you."

" _Luke._ " Julie's voice cracked and he pulled her into his arms and onto his lap, pressing a kiss to her head. 

"You guys are sooo mushy," Carlos rolled his eyes, making the others laugh in agreement. He thought there had already been too much mushiness today, even if he did think the present having to do with their mom was perfect for Julie.

Things wound down after that, it was getting late, and everyone wanted to get to bed so they could get up early and meet at the Molina's house the next morning to see what would be in their stockings from Santa.

—————————————--------

The next morning had everyone getting up early. Julie had set her phone alarm, she knew Carlos would be antsy to check out his stocking. She was also ready to spend the day back at her house, it had helped a little not being there, the emptiness of Christmas without her mom was dulled here at the boys'. It was time to face it, though.

The boys and Julie ran across the street with Fender and Lyric, only pausing so the puppies could have their morning potty break.

“We’re here!”

“Yay! Time for stockings!” Carlos bounced over from the counter where he was finishing a bowl of cereal, hugging each of them in turn.

Ray leaned over the counter on his elbows as he sipped his coffee, a content, if bittersweet, smile gracing his lips.

Luke and Alex both stumbled over to him, and he stood, sliding two freshly poured cups of coffee over to them with a look of commiseration. They weren’t super late sleepers normally, but the blaring of an alarm always made waking up seem worse. 

Julie walked over as well, and Ray handed her a double size mug, “Half coffee-half hot cocoa?”

“Of course, mija. Just how you like it.”

“Thank you, Papi. Love you.” She snuck under his arm for a quick side hug, and he kissed her head.

“I love you too, honey.”

Carlos gestured at them impatiently. “Come on! Its time to open stockings!”

“Go ahead and start, mijo.”

“Yay!” he grabbed the one with his name on it and started pulling things out. 

Stocking stuffers in the Molina house had usually been taken care of by Rose, but Ray had done his best this year to recreate her thoughtfulness and silliness.They each had an apple (something healthy in the midst of all the holiday treats) and candy. Plus some silly little toys and games from the dollar store, random coloring books and children’s puzzles. He had also gotten the boys nice reusable water bottles, each different colors and personalized with their names and the band logo, as well as a new one for Julie to match. 

The boys loved everything, but Ray’s heart clenched at the childlike surprise and gratitude that spread across Alex, Reggie, and Luke’s faces just at the sight of the stockings with their names on them. Once again protectiveness rose up in his chest, these were _his_ boys now, and they were never going to feel unwanted, or neglected, or lost, not ever again.

They played with some of their stuff for a while, Reggie loved his Disney Princess coloring book and colored pencils. It had been an early morning, though, and soon they were all dozing off around the living room. Julie and Luke curled up on the love seat the way they used to for movie nights before the new house, just Fender was a new addition. Alex and Willie sprawled on the full couch. Reggie and Carlos fell asleep next to each other on the floor, Lyric cuddled between, a half finished puzzle in front of them.

Ray just shook his head, found blankets to lay over all of them and poured himself another cup of coffee. He settled himself at the kitchen table with his laptop, he had been sneaking candid pictures over the last several days with his phone, and he wanted to see if there were any really good ones.

————————————————

By the time Tia Victoria arrived that afternoon, everyone was awake again and Ray was helping Reggie put together the sides to go with the turkey that Ray had put in the oven that morning.

“Sobrina! Sobrinos! Feliz Navidad!”

“Tia! I got a bass guitar and Reggie is going to give me lessons!” Carlos gave her an excited hug.

Victoria squeezed him tight and ran a hand over his hair as he leaned back to look up at her, “That’s great, Carlitos.”

Willie came up to hug her next and thank her for the pajamas, especially for making sure they were shorts.

“You are very welcome, niño.”

The other boys and Julie all also greeted her and thanked her sincerely, they were all wearing the pajamas, as was tradition. 

“You picked some good ones this year, Tia. They’re really comfy.”

“You’re welcome, sobrina, I’m so glad you like them,” standing up she hugged Julie, she had knelt down to greet the two puppies and give them each a treat from the bag she had taken to slipping in her purse whenever she knew she would be coming over.

They chatted about some of the other presents they had received, and they all gave Tia Victoria her presents from them. The boys had gotten her a gift certificate for her Kindle, and Julie had picked out a new pilates outfit for her (Carlos had chipped in so it was from both of them). Ray bought her some nice wine, and a new yoga mat.

Finally dinner was ready and they all sat down, clasping hands and saying grace. Ray spoke a bit vaguely, since Tia Victoria didn’t quite know the whole story, but it was heartfelt and moving, and most of the table had shiny eyes by the end.

Christmas Day was full of family and warmth, and everyone went to bed feeling pretty happy that night. There was a big hole where Rose should have been, but they were making it through so far.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, the writer's block. I *struggled* with this chapter. I think it's a lot harder when I have to write about a specific day or plot point, my brain just checks out and has ideas for *other* events that are for later, but not the one thing I need to write.
> 
> Anyway, this is barely edited, so *shrug*. 
> 
> As always, thank you all so much for reading, and kudos, and commenting. A review on FF.net asked to see Carlos's present to Luke and that, at least, was something I somewhat built this chapter around, so comments do make a difference! 
> 
> I know I tend to suck at replying to comments, but I DO read them and appreciate them so much! I just have a full-time job, so when I have time I try to use it to write.


	46. Part Quarante-six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> New Year's Eve fluff, kinda just filler.

Part Quarante-six

\--------------------------

New Year's Eve rolled around, and everyone was pretty excited to stay up late and watch the ball drop. It was a Thursday night, and they had a gig that Saturday, so the previous days after Christmas had mostly been spent rehearsing in the studio. They all decided that there would be no rehearsing New Years Eve or New Years Day, so they would do a final run-through of their setlist on Saturday morning and be fresh for that night.

Flynn had gone over all the last minute stuff with the club, with a little help from Carrie and Bobby. She was an excellent manager, but she was still in high school, so it helped to have the clout of 'Trevor Wilson' and his daughter to back her up. She had even scheduled Carrie and 'Dirty Candi' at a gig at a different club the next weekend, since a couple of the girls were on vacation with their families this weekend.

Ray texted Alex at lunch: 'Did you guys get all the snacks? Do you need me and Reggie to pick anything up on the way home?'

Reggie had gone with Ray to help carry and set up his camera gear for a photo shoot, he was going to be starting his photography class the second week of January. Ray was having a wonderful time giving him tips and just sharing his passion with someone who was truly interested. Julie had music with her mom, and Carlos was more into baseball the last few years, so Reggie was his chance to pass on photography.

Alex to Ray: 'We got everything on the list, so unless you want something else, we should be all set.'

A moment later: 'Thanks Ray.'

A soft smile broke across Ray's face, ever since Christmas the boys had seemed a little bit lighter. He was pretty sure it had been the stockings and the way everything had gone so well. It was like they had finally accepted that they were safe and it wasn't going to go away, and he was so grateful he could give that to them. 

\-----------------------------

"Dad! Reggie!" Carlos bounced out across the street when they pulled up, they could see he had been playing catch to break in his new baseball glove with Luke and Fender.

"Hey little bro! Are you trying to teach Luke some baseball? 'Cause I know he's not that athletic, regardless of those muscles," Reggie raised his voice to make sure Luke heard him.

"Hey!" Luke walked over to the edge of the yard and crossed his arms, only slightly surprisingly clad in an actual sweatshirt since it was chilly out.

"Actually he's not bad, Reg," Carlos grinned at his now honorary older brother, "He would be better if he didn't keep almost tripping over Fender, though."

Reggie and Ray glanced up just as Julie called to Luke from the boys' front door, watching in slight horror as he spun around and then stumbled, arms flying out as he pulled his foot back up and shifted it quickly to land somewhere else to avoid stepping on his puppy.

"Luke!" Julie dashed out into the yard in an attempt to help.

"Fender! Jeez, dude! You have _got_ to stop doing that!" Luke awkwardly regained his balance and reached down to pick up the dog, "I can't afford to fall and break anything, buddy. We have a gig in a couple days."

"Are you okay?!"

"Yeah, Jules, I'm good."

She stared him down for a moment with a raised eyebrow.

"Okay, okay, no more baseball or letting Fender run around outside under my feet until _after_ the gig," his hand went out and tugged one of her curls gently, "I'll be more careful, boss, I swear."

"Good. We don't have anyone to play and sing your part on such short notice, you dummy. So if you hurt yourself we're screwed. And you should be more careful from now on in general, we'll have more gigs."

"Wow, thanks for the concern for your boyfriend. Nice to know your first priority is the band. I'm really feeling the love," He mock pouted at her, leaning his head against Fender's, and the two sets of puppy eyes caused her to drop her stern front.

Her expression softened and she stepped forward, one hand going to pet Fender and one cupping Luke's cheek, her eyes conveying a whole private conversation, " _Mi alma._ "

Luke's entire body relaxed, and he shifted Fender to just one arm so he could slip his other around Julie's waist and tug her into his chest, pressing a kiss to her forehead, "I know, and I promise Jules."

Carlos rolled his eyes at them, fidgeting and turning back to Ray and Reggie, "I know it's only like 3:30, but when are we going to have dinner? I'm hungry. Julie and Luke fed me lunch at noon, that's _ages_ ago!"

Ray tore his eyes away from the sweet scene in the other yard and smiled fondly at him, "Carlos, that is not that long ago. But. I did put some snacks on the list for Alex and Willie, they would have been in the groceries they brought home earlier. Why don't you go tell them I said you could have a bag of chips and some fruit snacks to hold you until dinner?"

"Ooh, fruit snacks!" he was off and running back across the street in an instant, Ray's chuckling following, especially since Reggie had perked up at the mention of fruit snacks as well.

He looked at Ray and bounced on his toes a bit, "Can I go get some too, Ray?"

"Sure, Reg, go right ahead," Ray shook his head in amusement as Reggie beamed and took off after Carlos.

\----------------------------------

Willie was tugging a reluctant, blushing, Alex around the living room in a erratic dance as the music from the 'New Year's Rockin' Eve TV Special' played in the background. 

" _But if the world was ending you'd come over, right? You'd come over and you'd stay the night. Would you love me for the hell of it?_ "

"Nice pipes, Willie!" Luke shot him a thumbs up from his reclined position on the couch, Julie laying against his chest, petting and snuggling Fender in her own lap.

"You are pretty good, dude." Reggie was curled up in the other corner of the couch with Carlos sitting next to him, both of them providing cuddles to Lyric.

There was a knock on the door, everyone exchanging puzzled looks, normally their family just walked in. Willie let go of Alex's hands and went to go open it.

"We're here!"

"Surprise!"

Flynn and Carrie burst through the door, Bobby and Ray trailing after them with a paper grocery bag in each of their arms.

"Hey!"

"We didn't know you guys were going to come over!"

"What's up disappointment?"

"Hey, underachiever!"

"You two are weird, you know that?" Carrie shook her head at Flynn and Julie, welcoming a hug from Reggie who had gotten up to greet the newcomers.

Flynn and Julie just exchanged a glance and burst into laughter.

" _*Cough*_ -Demon.- _*cough*_ "

"Hey!"

"I'm kidding, you know I love ya, Care," Flynn slipped her arms around Carrie's waist in a hug from behind, putting her chin on the other girl's shoulder. 

Carrie gave a playful long-suffering sigh and wiggled away, "Yeah, yeah." She rolled her eyes and reached out to give Flynn's arm a quick reassuring squeeze, to let her know she wasn't really mad, "It's fine."

"Hey Ray, what's in the bags?" Luke head was tipped back on the back of the couch, looking upside down at Bobby and Ray where they were still standing near the door.

Ray grinned mischievously, " _This_ is my surprise!" He reached in his bag and pulled out a bottle of sparkling wine, Bobby following his lead and lifting one from his bag as well. "I've decided since we're all just staying in tonight, and Bobby and I can supervise as responsible adults, you guys should have a little something to celebrate the New Year."

"Dope!" Willie tossed a thumbs up behind Alex's back, having gone back and tugged him into a close hug to sway to the music. 

"Ooh, really Papi?" Julie lay her head back on Luke's shoulder and smiled at him, upside down as well.

"Even me?!" Carlos piped up from where he was still cuddling Lyric on the other side of the couch.

"Uh, no. No, mijo, you're still too young," he slid the bottle back in the bag and held up a hand to forestall the protest forming on Carlos's now pouting lips, "I got you some non-alcoholic sparkling juice, though, so you won't be too left out."

Carlos scrunched up his face as he thought about it, but then he finally huffed out a breath and nodded in concession at the compromise. 

\----------------------------

It was getting closer and closer to midnight, and Ray had opened a couple of the bottles already. Reggie had decided he didn't really like the taste, and had switched to sharing with Carlos, but the others had each had a few plastic flutes so far. Alex was draped over Willie, more relaxed with being affectionate in front of everyone due to the loosening of his inhibitions.

"This is kinda nice, the bubbles are tingly in my nose when I take a drink," he sipped from his glass and then giggled.

"Well, Alex is obviously a light-weight. Make a note of that for future reference, guys," Bobby chuckled and took a drink from his soda.

The others laughed too, Willie pressing a kiss to his boyfriend's head.

The announcement from the TV that the countdown would be starting soon caught everyone's attention just then and they quieted to watch, Ray walking around and refilling all the drinks so they would be ready to toast.

10

9

8

7

6 

5

4

3

2

1...

As the ball reached the bottom, everyone cheered and toasted. Willie snuck the glass from Alex's hand before he drank and kissed him as a distraction. Alex wasn't drunk, really, just tipsy, but Willie didn't want him to trip over that line.

Julie turned to Luke and after they each had a small sip for their toast, they set their glasses on the coffee table again and Luke cupped her face in his hands.

"I love you Julie, mon coeur."

She smiled and linked her hands behind his neck, fingers slightly ruffling through his hair. She leaned in and touched her lips to his, and he smiled for a moment against them before drawing her closer into a deep passionate kiss.

When she pulled back to breathe she stayed close, her forehead against his, "I love you too, Luke, mi alma."

Everyone else had politely looked away, busy hugging and celebrating themselves. Flynn and Carrie caught Carlos between them and each kissed his cheeks, causing the boy to turn red and mutter about cooties as he vigorously rubbed his cheeks to rid them of any trace of the girls.

Carrie also went and hugged her dad, pressing a sweet kiss to his cheek and accepting one on her temple as he held her close for a long moment. They were finally truly close again and both of them couldn't be more grateful. 

Carlos went to his dad for a hug, he had been delayed by the girls, but Reggie had been there, both of them laughing at the younger boy as he struggled.

The cheers on the TV got unexpectedly loud again, and popped the bubble around Julie and Luke. They shared another kiss, this one short, and got up to hug everyone.

\-----------------------------

The party wound down then, Bobby heading out, and Ray gathering Carlos to go back across the street to bed. Carrie and Flynn were going to be sleeping over on the large couch, each taking a side.

So, should we watch a movie or something? I'm not tired quite yet," Reggie asked everyone from his seat in the chair Bobby had vacated when he left.

"Sure, sounds good to me," Carrie replied, and everyone else nodded and mumbled their assent.

Flynn took charge and started to scroll through the options on the TV, pausing here and there and muttering as she tried to find something she thought everyone would like and that would be okay if some of them fell asleep to it or left to go to bed.

Eventually she just settled on Tangled, figuring it would be down to her and Carrie pretty soon, and they both liked that movie.

She wasn't wrong, Willie was wrapping Alex up in his arms to help him to his room before she even hit play, the blond drummer half-asleep already, as they all whispered 'goodnight'. 

Luke was gently running his fingers through Julie's hair as she lay snuggled into him, ear pressed to his chest over his heart.

"Good choice, Flynn," she smiled at her bestie, awake but deeply comfortable and relaxed. 

Carrie moved from the ground up to the other corner of the couch where Willie had been sitting with Alex, pulling a nearby blanket over her knees and agreeing, as she waved Flynn up to sit next to her.

The movie started and both Luke and Reggie tensed a bit, Flynn Rider's first words of 'This is the story of how I died.' freaking them out a little. But they quickly became enthralled, Reggie especially, as he had been coloring some pictures of the characters in his Disney coloring book from Christmas (he had found it was very calming, even if the present had been a bit of a joke).

They all ended up staying awake for the whole movie, although Julie did drift in and out some, having seen the movie several times already and being supremely cozy in Luke's embrace. 

As the credits rolled, and new suggestions popped up to watch next, Reggie was asking Flynn and Carrie all about them. They were all tired now, though, so the girls promised they would watch some more with him the next day.

Reggie and Luke took Fender and Lyric out for a potty break while Julie helped Flynn and Carrie arrange their blankets on the couch. When they came back in, everyone said goodnight and Reggie took Lyric to his room. Luke and Julie headed upstairs to his room, hand in hand with Fender right behind them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh, I had to work some overtime and the inspiration was just not there for this chapter for awhile. However, I think I do have some ideas for their gig, and for a few things after, so maybe it won't be so long until the next chapter!
> 
> Songs in this chapter are a tiny bit of 'If the World Was Ending' by JP Saxe & Julia Michaels, and 'Bloom' by The Paper Kites


	47. Part Quarante-sept

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Disney movies and WIllex.

Part Quarante-sept

\---------------------------

The next day everyone slept in, having stayed up so late. Even Reggie didn't get up until around 10, much later than his usual time.

Fender woke Luke up around 8, and the guitarist had carefully slipped out of bed and taken him outside, collecting Lyric from Reggie's room on the way. He had to tiptoe, since Flynn and Carrie were in the living room, and as soon as the puppies were done, he sent Lyric back to Reggie and took Fender back upstairs. 

Pausing before crawling back into bed with Julie, he smiled and quietly snuck his _other_ journal from its hiding place. He had idea for a few lines of lyrics to complete one of the songs he had half-finished within the pages. He sat at his small desk with Fender at his feet and filled in the new first lines he had come up with, and fixed a couple lines towards the end.

_ 'In the morning, when I wake _

_ And the sun is coming through _

_ Oh, you fill my lungs with sweetness _

_ And you fill my head with you _

_ Shall I write it in a letter? _

_ Shall I try to get it down? _

_ Oh you fill my head with pieces _

_ Of a song I can't get out _

_ Can I be close to you? _

_ Oo-oo-oo-ooh, oo-oo-oo-ooh  _

_ Can I be close to you? _

_ Oo-oo-oo-ooh, oo-oo-oo-ooh _

_ Can I take you to a moment _

_ Where the fields are painted gold _

_ And the trees are filled with memories _

_ Of the feelings never told? _

_ When the evening pulls the sun down _

_ And the day is almost through _

_ Oh, the whole world, it is sleeping _

_ But my world is you  _

_ Can I be close to you? _

_ Oo-oo-oo-ooh, oo-oo-oo-ooh  _

_ Can I be close to you? _

_ Oo-oo-oo-ooh, oo-oo-oo-ooh _

_ Can I be close to you? _

_ Oo-oo-oo-ooh, oo-oo-oo-ooh  _

_ Can I be close to you? _

_ Oo-oo-oo-ooh, oo-oo-oo-ooh _

_ Can I be close to you? _

_ Oo-oo-oo-ooh, oo-oo-oo-ooh' _

Julie turned over restlessly, her arm reaching out for him in the bed, and he quickly shut the journal, hiding it away again. With a soft smile he tucked himself under the covers next to her and curled his arms around her as she instinctively rolled into them, nuzzling her nose into his chest and relaxing once more. Fender jumped up and turned around a few times before settling close to her back.

The two of them easily fell back asleep with Julie and didn't wake up again until almost 11.

\--------------------

The day was spent watching several Disney movies, at least for Reggie, Flynn, and Carrie. Reggie liked the animation, and the fairly predictable plots that always ended with a happily ever after. 

"So what was your favorite, Reg?" Carrie asked him.

It had dwindled to just her, Flynn and Reggie after the first movie (Pocahontas from 1995, released about year after the boys' untimely deaths). Willie had seen it, thanks to a younger cousin that had made him watch it with her at one point before *his* death, but he enjoyed watching the other's reactions. 

Willie and Alex had decided to take the puppies to the park after it ended, and Julie and Luke headed off to the studio volleying ideas for a new song. Julie had gotten distracted towards the end of the movie with some lyrics she thought of, so they were gone as soon as the credits rolled. Flynn and Carrie had looked at each other and shrugged, asking if Reggie wanted to watch another one and he had eagerly agreed.

By evening they had also seen Hercules and Mulan. Flynn had looked up the movies in order of their release, and while The Hunchback of Notre Dame was between Pocahontas and Hercules, she decided that could wait. As much as she felt it was underrated, it seemed a little heavy for the day. Dorky Hercules and kickass Mulan were more fun, and if she was honest, they had a few of her favorite songs that she was excited to see Reggie's reaction to.

"Well, I liked them all. I think my favorite was probably Hercules so far, though."

"That one is pretty good," Flynn smiled at him.

Carrie tipped her head to one side and studied him, "Why Reggie?"

He looked at her, a bit startled, but with a short moment of hesitation he elaborated, "I guess I like how he's famous, but he's really kinda shy and, well," He paused and blushed a little, ducking his head. "he's actually not very good at flirting with Meg."

Flynn was slightly confused, but Carrie reached over and squeezed his hand.

"You relate a little bit? Like with Kayla?"

He nodded, "I like her, but I still don't know her that well, so it's difficult to tell if I'm making a fool of myself. Texting is super confusing because I never know if my jokes make sense and a lot of the time she sends a 'lol' or 'haha' when I didn't make a joke, or I didn't think I did?"

Both girls winced in sympathy. 

"Is that why you haven't been replying to her as much? She mentioned it to me on Monday before she left with her family for their ski vacation," Carrie eyed him with concern. She didn't want Kayla to be hurt, but she had seemed to be over the initial crush she had had, and mentioned it might be best just getting to know him as a friend for now, except that might mean Reggie might be hurt if he was already invested and just insecure.

"Sorta. I just think I've decided it's best to get to know her as a friend first, before we try to jump into anything more. I've been thinking about it _a_ _lot_ and I definitely need more time to get used to this, well, _future_. I like her, a lot, but I don't want to force anything," he stared down at his hands and fidgeted, then took a deep breath, "Will you ask Bobby, I mean your dad, about his therapist Carrie? I think I want to talk to someone."

Carrie first allowed herself a mental sigh of relief, both her friends were on the same page so it was less likely feelings would be hurt. Next, she addressed his request, "Reggie, of course I'll ask him. I also just settled on a new therapist that I feel comfortable with to talk about some things myself. I'm behind you with whatever you need."

"Me too, Reg," Flynn spoke up and rested her hand on his shoulder in support.

"Thanks," he gave them a timid smile of gratitude that they returned with a double hug, sandwiching him between them. 

Reggie grinned at the warm fuzzy feeling he got from the hug, it was really great to have friends like them.

"Can we watch another one? Ray's cooking tonight so we still have time before he calls us over for dinner."

"Sure, Reggie!" Flynn consulted the timeline list on her phone, and made a few faces as she scrolled through, deciding to scrap the 'in order' plan. She would have loved to show him 'The Emperor's New Groove, but that was definitely one to watch with _all_ the guys, they would love it. 'Tarzan' was in-between also, but that one wasn't one of her top favorites, so she finally settled on the Princess and the Frog. 

She and Carrie had to hug Reggie again after the part with Ray the firefly- Flynn hadn't even considered the matching names. She had even teared up a little thinking about how their Ray had his own out of reach Evangeline with the loss of Rose.

\----------------------------

Everyone went over to the Molina house for dinner that night, Ray had wanted to give Reggie a break from cooking and had made a huge batch of spaghetti. Bobby arrived with cupcakes for dessert, he was joining them and then dropping Flynn off on his way home with Carrie. Everyone had firmly declared that they needed to go to bed early and get some good sleep that night, so they would be well rested for the gig the next night.

Dinner was spent chatting about the new song Julie and Luke had been working on, and a few stories about wipeouts Willie had taken at the park that day when he was boarding. Alex had been hanging out with the puppies watching, and he shook his head as he described the tumble that had caused Willie's skinned elbow that was now sporting a large bandage.

Willie shrugged, "What can I say? I got pretty used to not getting scraped up when I was a ghost, guess I need a few reminders I'm alive again before it sinks in."

"That's not..." Alex pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.

"Hey, I'm mostly kidding Hotdog. I'm fine, and I swear I'll try to be more careful," Willie wrapped and arm around his shoulders and kissed Alex's cheek reassuringly.

The drummer sighed again, but it was really hard to stay mad when Willie was being so sweet and sincere, so he just nodded in resignation. Skateboarding was part of Willie, and Alex loved him exactly as he was. 'Wait. Hold on. _Loved?!_ ' Alex's brain screeched to a halt at that thought.

"Alex?" Willie felt him freeze up and gave him a concerned look as he retracted his arm. He was slightly worried he had pushed too far, knowing Alex was sensitive about being demonstrably affectionate in public. It was odd, though, he usually was pretty comfortable when it was only the family.

"You okay Alex?" Julie took note of the sudden tension in the drummer also, leaning in close to question him quietly. Luckily he was sitting right next to her, on the side Luke wasn't on.

He sucked in a quick shallow gasp and turned to her with panicked eyes, "Can I talk to you? Privately?"

Julie immediately nodded and stood up. She tossed out a vague excuse to everyone else and looped her arm through Alex's, drawing him away from the table and up to her room.

\------------------------

"Okay, what's up?"

Alex paced in front of her bed as she sat, patiently waiting for him to gather his thoughts and speak.

Finally he stopped and turned to face her. Raking his hands through his hair, he squeaked out in a terrified voice, " _I love Willie!_ "

She blinked at him, bemused, "Obviously? I mean.... I don't get it? Of course you do?"

"But we've never... _I've_ never... Julie! What am I supposed to _do_?!"

"Ohhh!" she paused and frowned, "Do you- do you want ideas for a big gesture or something? To tell him?"

"Arrrgh!" Alex groaned and dragged his hands over his face, his next few words muffled behind them, "NO. Julie, I don't know how to be around him now! I can't _tell him_!"

"Uhhh, what?"

"It will be too much. I'm too much, we aren't there yet. What if he doesn't want me to love him and he _leaves_?" his voice broke and trailed off, sounding tiny and hurt.

Julie just stared at him for a moment in disbelief, then jumped up and wrapped him up in a tight hug.

He slumped against her, breathing rough, but thankfully not panicked.

"Alex? I'm not sure how it's escaped you, but Willie is ridiculously in love with you," she stated softly but firmly.

An uncertain mumble against her shoulder, "How... Um, you really think so?"

That caused her to roll her eyes in exasperation, "I know so. You two are almost as obvious as Luke and I. We're just more comfortable being touchy in public. You two are more, I don't know? quiet? about being physically affectionate. And that's totally okay! Everyone is different, and every relationship is different. What matters is what's right for _you_. And you and Willie together is right. Just tell him, mi amigo."

Alex pulled back and finally met her gaze again, "Are you sure?"

Unable to hold back, she rolled her eyes again and nodded, "I'm _positive_ Alex. Ask him to go for a walk or something after dinner and just tell him. It's going to be perf- great, it's going to be great, you'll see." She figured he didn't need more pressure by worrying about it being _perfect_ , so great was a better word choice, she decided privately as she reassured him. "He defied Caleb for you and then took the chance to become human again to be with you. Trust me, he loves you too," she looked at him expectantly, "Are you ready to go back and finish dinner now?"

"I-" he sighed, her words sinking in, and allowing a good amount of tension to leave him. "Okay. Yeah, I'm ready."

Julie caught his arm and guided him out of her room and down the stairs, sitting them back in their seats at the table and rejoining the conversation with a meaningful look to everyone. Flynn and Carrie picking up her message most easily and continuing chatting, deterring any questioning or speculation about Alex's _moment_ and what he and Julie had talked about.

"Is he okay?" Luke's whisper caressed her ear as he leaned in close.

Julie shivered involuntarily, his effect on her both frustrating and wonderful, "He's fine, mi alma. I promise." She smirked to herself as she felt him shiver a little in response when she said the nickname, always pleased at the reminder that he was just as affected by her.

\-----------------------------------------

Alex was too nervous to eat much more of his food, mostly pushing it around his plate as he tried to gather up the courage to ask Willie to take that suggested walk after dinner.

"Hey. Alex, can we talk privately after dinner?" Willie spoke softly, not daring to look his boyfriend in the eyes.

"Uh, uh, yeah, sure." 

They slipped out the back door, Alex figuring the studio would work for their talk, it had worked for Julie and Luke. 

"Willie-"

"Alex, I-"

"You go ahead."

"No, no, it's okay you start."

They both broke into nervous laughter.

"I'll start. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable at dinner when I put my arm around you. I never want to do that, you mean so much to me and I honestly don't mind that you don't really like PDA. I just thought, well, you seem okay with it in front of family, or at least everyone there tonight, but if you weren't I'm sorry. I'll try to be more aware and not do it again," Willie twisted his fingers, fidgeting and his expression was open and contrite.

"I- You- No, no that's okay, that- It wasn't that," Alex felt a lot of his nerves dissipate, it reminded him of when they had been at the mall in Canada. Willie had looked at him with the same affection and acceptance, and it had given Alex the confidence to initiate their first kiss then, now he could feel the confidence he needed for this.

"Willie, I'm in love with you. I love you."

The world seemed to stand still for a split second, the two of them staring into each other's eyes and then it was like everything went to fast forward. Willie surged into Alex and tugged his head down into a passionate kiss, showing him without words just how he felt about that declaration. Alex's arms wound around his boyfriends waist and held him close.

Eventually they pulled back to breathe and Willie cupped Alex's face, locking eyes again, "I love you too, Alex," he laughed a little, sounding slightly choked up, "I thought I would say it first, but this was perfect. _I love you._ "

Alex felt a few tears of happiness of his own, but he just leaned down and kissed Willie again, their lips parting and tongues stroking over each other. 

When Alex's phone buzzed in his pocket, they had somehow ended up on one of the chairs, Willie sitting in Alex's lap, hands slipped under shirts and exploring bare chests and backs. Willie had actually almost maneuvered Alex's shirt entirely off, it was bunched up near his armpits, but they hadn't stopped kissing long enough to finish stripping it off.

" _Ohh._ "

"Alex, _babe,_ " a gasp.

Alex shifted under Willie to reach his back pocket and caused both of them to bite back moans. He looked at his phone and huffed in displeasure.

"Luke would like to remind us that the gig is tomorrow, and I need to get to bed early."

"Hmmm, well, we do live in the same house and a bed would be much more comfortable than this chair..." Willie had been trailing kisses along Alex's neck, and he felt a shudder, smiling against the drummer's skin. 

"I- I'm not sure..." Alex involuntarily tipped his head to the side to give better access.

Willie immediately pulled back, "Hotdog, just to cuddle and sleep. _If_ that's okay with you."

Alex took a deep breath and attempted to center his thoughts. Julie's words echoed back to him, 'Everyone is different, and every relationship is different. What matters is what's right for _you_.'

"I... I want to cuddle and hold you tonight, and we can think about, talk about, anything more, okay?"

"Alex, I'm good with anything you want. I- because I... _care_ about you Alex," Willie couldn't help the tiny smirk and the throwback to earlier in their relationship.

It had the intended effect and Alex let out a short laugh of acknowledgement.

They got up and walked out of the studio hand-in-hand, headed home across the street to get a good night's sleep and looking forward to the gig the next night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song: 'Bloom' by The Paper Kites


	48. Part Quarante-huit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gig, basically.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you got a notification for the previous chapter again, just know I went back to fix a few typos I noticed. I was really tired when I posted it.

Part Quarante-huit

\------------------------

The morning run-through rehearsal went well, and all too soon they were loading up their cars with their instruments and on the way to the venue. 'The Bookclub' was a little out of the way spot, not quite as well known as others that tended to have open mic nights. They instead usually actually booked bands for full shows, if they did well, they were welcomed back on more popular nights, if not, they weren't.  
  
"So, it wasn't super easy to convince them to give you guys a Saturday night right away, but since the manager knew about you playing the Orpheum he's allowing it. I also showed him the video your dad made of your 'Edge of Great' performance, and he was hard to read, but we're here!"

"Flynn, we appreciate everything you put into getting us this gig. We're going to _rock_ this place!" Luke bounced in the driver's seat, turning around to grin at her for a quick moment as he was stopped at a red light.

"Yeah, you're awesome Flynn!" Reggie reached across the back seat and gave her arm a squeeze.

Julie was shaking her head in mirth as they pulled up, the name reminding her of her first true 'Luke Patterson pep talk', in her kitchen when he gave her 'Bright'. The club hadn't existed back in 1994, but she enjoyed the idea of the boys coming full circle to play at this 'Bookclub', this time with the chance of agents in the audience.

Luke came around the SUV and opened her door, taking her hand and helping her out, tugging her right into a quick hug, "Book clubs, what can I say?"

She laughed and walked to the back with him, taking her keyboard case to bring inside. He took his guitar in its case and also grabbed a few smaller pieces of Alex's drum set. They had split it up between the two cars, and Reggie swung his bass case onto his back, walking over to where Ray had just parked, and helping Alex, Willie, and Carlos get the rest of the drums and a newly designed banner to hang behind them on stage. Flynn had redesigned their 'Julie and the Phantoms' logo a little, and snuck Julie's mic away so she could copy her doodles of the three little ghosts and add them.

\------------------------

They went with 'Bright' for the sound check, since it felt a little nostalgic to play a song that had originally been intended for 'Sunset Curve', and it went great. Once they finished, Ray waved them over to a table right to the side of the stage to sit down, and when they did Carrie and Bobby showed up with a stack of pizza boxes.

"Here, we _are not_ having a repeat of last time! So we went and literally watched them make these and brought them here to you ourselves," Bobby glared down at the pizza, "It better not cause _any_ problems, either!"

The whole table laughed, it was slightly hysterical, but it let them lose a bit of tension that had settled around them now that they were really here. Taking a break, after the Orpheum, after coming back to life, they had needed it. Also, with the holidays, it had just made sense to give themselves that extra time and the chance to refocus. It was worth it, too. Flynn had been able to take over their social media and create buzz, she had booked this gig, redone the band logo, and Julie and Luke had written several more songs. 

"Okay, so I'm not sure if any agents are going to be here tonight, but this is your first real show together. Clean slate, you're all here and _human_ and all you should be thinking about is going out there and having a great time! Just play and have fun!" Flynn clapped at them as they finished eating and shooed them backstage, since the club would be opening its doors soon for the show.

Bobby rested a hand on her shoulder, "You know, you are already an excellent manager Flynn. If that's what you want to go for as a career, I am happy to help guide you, too."

She looked up at him with a smile, "Thanks! I'm not sure yet if I want that, I like fashion too, and wouldn't mind working on my DJ-ing more, as well. I figure I have time to decide."

He chuckled and replied, a bittersweet tone invading his words, "You do have time. If I could go back... Well, I might have picked something different, but I guess I'm giving myself a chance to do that now, aren't I?"

Flynn just smiled and nodded at him. The others and Carlos were still munching on slices of pizza, the younger boy playing a game on his phone. He was happy to be here, but the wait for the show to start as the audience was filing inside was going to be boring.

\------------------------------

The show was amazing, the audience was on their feet for most of the time. At the short break between the two sets, the boys and Julie slipped out to refill their water bottles and chat with everyone for a few minutes. When they went backstage again and the second set began, Ray wandered over to the bar to order a beer. He figured he could relax with one or maybe two, and he would just ask Reggie to drive home. It was wonderful to watch them up there, but he couldn't help but feel a little sad, and a little wistful. 

'Rose should be here,' he thought to himself.

A female voice next to him pulled him out of his musings, "They're really good."

"Yeah. My kids are great," Ray took a sip of his beer and glanced over to the speaker, a quizzical look taking over his face, "Hey, you look familiar."

The attractive, curly-haired woman gave a soft laugh, "Maybe because we've met before. Or, well, almost met." She stuck her hand out to shake, "Andi Parker. I was about to speak to your daughter at Eats 'n Beats until you showed up."

Ray cringed, that wasn't the best moment, and after talking to Julie that night and everything since, he'd rather not be reminded, "Uh, yeah. That was a misunderstanding."

Andi cocked her head to the side and studied him, "Okay. So, now why do you say your _kids_? Obviously Julie is yours, but what about the others? And they're actually here tonight, no hologram set up?"

"Oof. That's a lot of questions."

She just turned more fully to face him, propping a hip against the bar top and raised an eyebrow, taking a small sip of her own drink.

"All right, okay. Well, to be frank but vague, the boys didn't have the best home lives, so they moved here around the beginning of October. I've pretty much adopted them into the family, although Luke is dating Julie, and he'll probably end up my son-in-law at some point..." Ray gave a mental head shake, why was he spilling so much to this mostly random stranger?

A smile stole across her face at his somewhat awkward explanation, "That's nice. Well, not the bad home lives part, but that they have you to look out for them now." She bit her lip and gave him a confiding smirk, "Luke is the guitarist, right? I'm not surprised at all that they're together, I don't know how their 'holograms' worked, but honestly you could _see_ the moment I think he figured out he was in love with her when they sang that song at Eats 'n Beats."

"Wait, really? I got there just as they were taking their bows, so I missed the actual performance," Ray eyed Julie and Luke onstage as they shared her mic for the end of 'Edge of Great', happy she hadn't had a piano to climb on this time (he _was_ her dad, and it had made him nervous- what if she fell?).

"Oh, yeah. Wait, this is the song!"

The two of them stood companionably next to each other and just watched 'Finally Free', Ray seeing the conviction in Luke as he sang the _'and you're a part of me... now 'til eternity...'_ lines in response to Julie. 

"So, do they have a agent yet?" Andi's voice held a forced casual tone.

Ray had to pause and let her question sink in so his reply wouldn't be too excited, "Ah, no. No they don't yet. Flynn, Julie's best friend has been acting as their manager and social media person so far. She's the one who redesigned the logo and booked this gig." 

"Then I would like to formally put in my name for consideration, I really think Destiny Records would be a good place for them. I've already been talking them up and putting together a contract offer. Here's my card," she held it out to Ray and he grinned at her as he took it.

He thought to himself that a label called ' _Destiny_ Records' might even be a sign. Plus, he liked this Andi Parker, she seemed honest and genuine. She also obviously actually _l_ _iked_ 'Julie and the Phantoms' and their music, he had noticed her happily humming along to part of 'Finally Free' and he definitely gave her points for that.

Onstage they were starting 'Stand Tall', and Ray knew that meant the end of their set and the show, so he turned to Andi and gently touched her forearm. "We'll call you. I gotta..." he nodded back to his table at the side of the stage.

"It was truly a pleasure to meet you... um?"

"Oh! Ray, uh, I'm Ray," he shook her hand again, and they shared a quick smile before he was off, weaving through the crowd back to his family.

\-------------------------------

"That was incredible! Jules, they all saw you shine like the star you are!" Luke picked her up in a hug as they exited the stage and spun around with her, "Alex and Reggie, you guys were absolutely _amazing_ too!"

Julie giggled and held onto him tightly, "Luke!"

Willie, Carlos, Flynn, and Carrie came busting into the backstage area, cheering and piling on Alex and Reggie for hugs at first. Then welcoming Julie and Luke once he put her down and they collided with the rest for a big group hug.

Eventually they managed to calm down enough to get their instruments together and load them back in the cars. Ray helped here and there, but mostly just watched. He had decided to wait to share the good news about Andi and Destiny Records until they got home, he was sure the celebration would be crazy.

They soon had everything ready to go and drove off for home. Once there, they quickly let the puppies out and then Ray called to them all to gather in the living room. Bobby leaned against the wall with his arms crossed and a pleased look on his face, he hadn't said anything, but he had seen Ray speaking to Andi Parker and he was pretty sure he knew what was coming.

"Okay, so you all had an unbelievable show tonight, _and_ " he paused for effect, drawing out the sudden anticipation in the air, "you have an offer to speak to Andi Parker of Destiny Management! She gave me her card and told me to make sure you all call her!"

For a moment after he spoke there was defeating silence, but then the room erupted in chaos as the idea of a real offer from a real, legitimate agent and label sunk in. 

Alex, Reggie, and Luke stumbled into a clumsy hug, yelling with happiness, as Carrie and Flynn grabbed Julie before she could join them. Carlos jumped on the couch, happy for his sister and the guys who had become surrogate brothers, Willie catching his hand and jumping on the ground next to him.

Bobby clapped a hand to Ray's shoulder as he leaned against the wall next to him, both men enjoying the enthusiastic celebration from their position off to the side.

"Julie! Get over here! We just got an _offer_!" Reggie waved her over and she slipped into the middle of the band hug, Luke's arms circling her and the other two wrapping theirs around the both of them together.

"We did it Jules," Luke whispered right in her ear, and she pressed her face into his chest with a beaming smile.

\-----------------------------

The next day they called Andi, or more accurately, _Ray_ called Andi and put her on speaker. It turned out she had written her cell number on the back of her card, and she was more than happy to talk to them about arranging a meeting, even if they were calling on a Sunday morning. They decided on the next Thursday evening, since Julie and Flynn were back in school starting Monday, and they needed to work around that.

After the phone call they split up, Willie and Alex went to take the puppies for a walk, Reggie went to plan the next weeks' dinners, and Julie and Luke went to the studio.

\------------------------- 

"I'm going to miss you tonight," Luke nuzzled his nose into Julie's hair as they sat on the couch in the studio, the new journal she had gifted him for Christmas open in front of them.

They both knew Ray had been more than patient and understanding letting Julie stay over at the boys' house during winter vacation, but he had just reminded Julie that school still came first, even if they did have a potential record deal.

"Well, I've been thinking about it, and while I need to be home so I have all my clothes and everything for school, that doesn't mean you can't come sleep in _my_ room during the week," she spoke teasingly, but there was an underlying tone of nervous hopefulness.

Luke breathed a deep sigh of relief into her hair, "Ohhh, _thank God._ I really don't think I could sleep without you anymore." 

"We'll need to get another bowl and leash and everything for Fender, to keep at my house. He obviously has to come with you."

"I love you, mon coeur."

Julie smiled and tipped her face up to him for a kiss, "I love you too, mi alma."

\----------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is chapter 48 and I'm already part way done with 49. That's what happens when I'm procrastinating writing a cover letter for a job (really a promotion) application. But you all get almost more than I've managed to write since before Christmas, so yay! Apparently I need outside stress? Or maybe just stop planning chapters like the holiday ones in advance, those stressed me out. *shrug* 
> 
> Also credit for the passing thought of Ray's to whoever wrote the story about Julie actually falling off the piano at one of their shows! I can't remember which one it was, but I will update this if someone knows or if I find it again!


	49. Part Quarante-neuf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, Julie has a sad day thinking about her Mom. But it's pretty sweet and happy at the end!

Part Quarante-neuf

\-----------------------------------

The next few days passed in a blur, Julie, and even Flynn and Carrie having trouble concentrating on school. All they could think about was the meeting on Thursday. 

"One more day Julie!" Flynn slung her arm over her bestie's shoulders for a quick side hug before pulling it back to catch one of her books that almost fell from her other arm.

"Aw, you guys are so lucky. I've been trying to snag a meeting with Andi Parker for _ages_ for Dirty Candi!" Carrie nudged Julie's shoulder from the other side with her own as the three girls walked out of school together that Wednesday.

"It still doesn't feel real," Julie paused and took a shuddering breath, "Actually, it _really_ doesn't feel real. The past few months have been like, almost, the best dream ever, and..."

"What, Julie? Isn't that a good thing?" Flynn's suddenly concerned gaze met Carrie's over Julie's now bowed head, then both of their attention was drawn to a worried-looking Luke as he hurried over. 

He had haphazardly parked the SUV in a reserved space, obviously figuring it wouldn't be there long enough to matter, and too anxious to get to Julie to care if it was. He had decided he liked picking her up at school, and today especially his 'Julie-sense' had him anxious to see her. She had been growing increasingly quiet the last couple days but hadn't opened up to him, changing the subject when he asked if anything was wrong. 

A soft sniffle escaped Julie and her timid words had heartbroken looks being shared between her two friends and her boyfriend as he reached them, "What if it _is_ just a dream? Things are going so well... What if I wake up and everyones gone and-" a tiny sob "what if it isn't real?!"

"Jules." Luke had gotten close enough to hear all of that, and was now close enough to reach out and tug her into his arms.

Her backpack slid off her shoulder, and he managed a small grateful smile as Flynn grabbed it and maneuvered it off Julie completely, allowing her to fully burrow into his chest as she started to cry in earnest.

"I got you Jules, I got you," He raised an eyebrow in question at Flynn and held out the keys to the SUV, "Could you...?"

"Of course. Carrie, will you follow us so you can bring me home after?"

"Absolutely. Let's go."

Luke guided Julie with him to the car and into the backseat, just letting her cry for now. He wasn't completely surprised at her breakdown, she hadn't had one over Christmas. There had been small signs that one was inevitable, though, such as the recent quiet of the last couple days. The last time he remembered her anything like that was right before her birthday, but this was worse. He held her close, stretching the seatbelt over both of them, not particularly safe, but better than no seatbelt.

Flynn concentrated on driving, a few tears sliding down her own cheeks, she _hated_ seeing Julie so sad.

Pulling into the driveway, she turned, "Luke, I'm going to bring her backpack inside and leave the keys on the counter. I'll tell everyone to give you some time."

" _Thank you_ Flynn," his eyes were shiny too, and they shared a nod of understanding.

She did as planned and then climbed into Carrie's car, the other girl had pulled up in front of the house and was waiting. Flynn leaned over and almost fell into a hug from an also teary Carrie as soon as she shut the car door. She had been watching Julie break down at different times ever since she lost her Mom, and it was difficult but also a relief to know that there was someone else to hold her friend when she cried now. Having someone to hold her when _she_ cried for her friend was a relief also, and she was grateful they had made up with Carrie.

\---------------------------------

Luke hummed quietly, one hand rubbing her back and one carding gently through Julie's hair. Her sobs had subsided and now she was just breathing raggedly with a few tears continuing to dampen his shirt.

"It's not a dream. I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere Julie."

A hiccup, and a nod turned shaking head.

"Yes, but no? It's not only about that is it?"

A slow nod.

"You wish you could walk in that meeting tomorrow with your Mom walking beside you, beside us," he didn't frame it as a question this time.

Vigorous nodding.

"Umhmm. Thought so," Luke paused, "I know it doesn't really make it better, but she _is_ going to be there. Nothing could stop her from watching over you, mon coeur. I bet she's _so_ happy for you."

Another hiccup and a ragged breath but no response.

Luke swallowed hard, "Jules, sweetheart, _please_ say something? What can I do? What do you need?"

"Happy for _us_ ," the whispering voice was raspy from crying, "She would have loved you so much. You and the guys." 

Luke's eyes closed with overwhelming relief, she had had him _so_ worried when she wasn't speaking. He let out a breath, suddenly feeling how tense he had been. "Jules? Do you want to go to your room? I think a nap before dinner sounds really good."

She lifted her head and peeked up at him, the puffy red eyes breaking his heart for the millionth time that afternoon, "Can we go to the studio? I just... I want to... I can't really explain..."

He pressed a kiss to her forehead, "Jules, I will go wherever you want, wherever you need. Come on."

Julie participated a lot more in getting out of the car than she had getting in, and even walked the first few steps towards the studio under her own power, but still leaning on him. Freezing in front of the doors, though, she spun around into Luke's arms, burying her face into the crook of his neck, tears flowing freely again.

" _Jules!_ " Luke gasp was tinged with panic as he almost stumbled from her sudden stop and her impact with his chest, "Julie, what do you need? Not the studio?"

He felt her reply more than heard it, a choked breath from where her lips grazed his neck, " _This._ "

His arms tightened around her reassuringly, even as he blinked in confusion. Then she tried to press even closer to him and he gave a mental shrug, going with his instincts and adjusting his hold, practically carrying her the last couple steps to the studio doors and inside to the couch. He tossed a quick 'thank you' to the universe that she had left one of her cozy blankets out here from their last songwriting session and sat down, folding her into his lap and wrapping the blanket around them. 

\---------------------------

Luke woke up to Julie stirring in his arms, she had cried herself to sleep and he had carefully laid down on the couch with her, eventually drifting off to sleep himself.

"Jules?"

She was draped over his chest and her hands drifted up to caress his face, her thumbs rubbing across his forehead as if to smooth away the lines of worry that had been creasing it all afternoon, "Mi alma, it's okay. I'm going to be okay. Because of _you_. Luke, I love you so much." Her eyes were still puffy and a bit red, but her gaze was clear and open.

The tension melted from his frame and the concern that had been dulling his eyes lifted slightly, shifting them to more green than hazel. Julie loved Luke's eyes, the way they changed colors in different light and with his different moods. They were most green when he was looking at her, especially when they were this close and cuddled together, and it never failed to make her smile and want to stop time so she could keep looking into them forever.

His response was barely a whisper of an exhale, but it was so sincere it caused her to tear up again, even though she thought she didn't have any tears left.

"I love you Julie, t'es l'amour de ma vie. _Both_ of my lives."

\--------------------------------------- 

They lay curled up on the couch for awhile longer, just holding each other close, until Luke's phone buzzed with a text from Reggie letting him know that dinner was ready. He looked down at Julie, peacefully curled into him, and smiled gently.

"Jules. Mon coeur," he brushed kisses over her cheeks, nose, and finally meeting her lips. Backing away and then melting in again when her hand curled around his neck to tug him close.

"I don't want to get up," she murmured against his mouth, "Can't we just stay here forever?"

He sighed, trailing his lips up to her temple to place a lingering kiss there, "I would love to, but we have to eat." His voice turned teasing, "And we can't send the boys to the meeting alone tomorrow, or who knows what our contract might look like?"

She actually giggled at that, and slowly pulled away to sit up and stretch. Her eyes felt a bit dry and itchy, but overall she could honestly say she felt at least 90% better. She had admitted to herself as she had fallen asleep that her tears had been more about the holidays and all the sad feelings she had been bottling up regarding celebrating them without her Mom, although the specific thought of not having her Mom there for the meeting the next day was certainly the catalyst for today.

Luke sat up too, and slid his arms around her from behind, dropping a kiss to her shoulder before resting his chin there, "You feel a little better now Jules?"

"Yeah. I think it was just a lot hitting me at once," she lay her head against his for a beat, then turned to peck his cheek and tell him she was ready to get up and go eat dinner.

\---------------------------------

Dinner was fairly subdued with Reggie, Alex, and Willie all worried about her, but they tried not to be too overbearing. They had each given her a hug when she and Luke came in, and Fender had been basically glued to her, rubbing up against her ankles and sitting almost on top of her feet during dinner. It made her feel very warm, and fuzzy, and loved.

Julie and Luke took Fender back over to the Molina's after dinner, bringing some leftovers for Ray and Carlos- Ray had a meeting with a client, and Carlos had been at a friend's house. Carlos dug into his plate, he had had some food at Benny's house, but he would never turn down a helping of Reggie's cooking.

Ray chewed slowly, an inquisitive expression trailing over Julie as she and Luke sat at the table with them while he and Carlos ate. Catching Luke's eye he could read lingering worry that was accentuated by the way he hovered around Julie, a hand always in hers, or on her shoulder, even fingers gently twisting in her hair when she leaned forward to listen to Carlos talk about his day. Something had happened, and judging by the bit of redness in Julie's eyes that was still noticeable, she had been crying.

Carlos finished up, and Ray shooed him off upstairs to work on his homework before raising an eyebrow at Julie and opening his arms for a hug. She shook her head for a split second, then flung herself into him. He was surprised not to feel her crying, but just went with it.

"What happened?" Ray directed the question to Luke, but Julie lifted her head and answered for herself.

"I had a bad afternoon. I was missing Mom. I think it was partly from Christmas, too."

Ray stroked a hand over his baby girl's head and tugged her closer, "Do you want to talk about it, mija?"

Julie nodded, and Ray led her over to the couch to sit down, Fender immediately jumping up to snuggle into her side. Luke smiled fondly at the scene and slipped away up the stairs to see if Carlos wanted help on his homework. He couldn't do much with science or geography, but he could certainly help with English. He had to know a lot about language so he could write lyrics, and he did spend time in those book clubs way back when.

\-------------------------------------

Ray and Julie had a good long talk, Julie opening up about the feelings she had been trying to push away and bottle up, and Ray told her he sometimes did that too. They both admitted they knew it was better to talk about them, but also that it was difficult sometimes. By the end they had agreed to make more of an effort to share what they were feeling, especially when they were feeling sad, since that was the main thing they both tried to hide. 

After a final big hug, Julie shuffled upstairs with Fender, thankful she had done her homework during her free period at school. Pausing in her doorway she stared inside, puzzled that Luke wasn't there waiting for her. Fender went in and leaped up on her bed, curling up with a quiet huff. Muffled laughter caught her ear, coming from Carlos' room, and she went down the hall. Knocking and then peeking in when her little brother called, "Come in!"

She found him and Luke sitting tucked close together on Carlos's bed, the younger boy's homework spread in front of them. Luke's hand was on Carlos's back as he leaned over to point out something in the notebook Carlos was writing in. The sight made her sink against the doorframe with a tender smile. Normally Reggie was the one Carlos would ask about homework, not that the bassist was very good at sitting still long enough to be all that helpful, she thought, amused.

When her little brother finished erasing and correcting the misspelling Luke had pointed out and looked up at him, a beaming grin on his face, Luke grinned right back and offered a high-five. Julie's heart melted at the sight. Reggie was like the fun big brother Carlos always wanted, but he _looked up_ to Luke, a lot. The gift at Christmas made even more sense now, and Carlos was right, Luke _was_ a lot like their mom. Not even just with music exactly, but he had the same enthusiasm and passion for life, always lighting up any room he was in, and always completely himself.

The two boys glanced up at her together then, and she couldn't help the soft affectionate sigh from spilling out. Luke raised an eyebrow, an expectant question written across his face.

"The talk was good. I'm good. I'm tired though, so even though it's still kinda early for bed, I'm going to go snuggle up with Fender and pick a movie to watch until I fall asleep."

"Do you want-" He started to shift to get up, but she shook her head and waved him to stay.

"No, no, it's fine, finish helping Carlos. He needs all the help he can get."

"Hey!" Carlos protested indignantly and pouted at his sister's tease.

Julie just giggled and shut the door, heading back to her room. It had been a really rough day, but it was turning out pretty darn great thanks to her family, all these people who loved her.

\-------------------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, this is all the fault of 'Afterglow'. I accidentally had that Ed Sheeran song on 'repeat one' so it was just playing over and over and over and I was busy typing so I didn't really notice? 
> 
> Also, Gummybear1178 wrote the fic about falling off the piano I mentioned last chapter! They left a super nice review on FF.net and mentioned it is posted there and here and on Wattpad. So yeah, it's a cute fic and worth looking up and reading!


	50. Part Cinquante

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not exactly what I planned, but the characters decided they were doing this. Can't wait to hear what you all think.

Part Cinquante

\------------------------------------------

Luke finished up with Carlos, surprisingly managing to be helpful with his Math homework as well as the English. Tiptoeing down the hall, he peeked in at Julie, smiling softly to see her curled up with Fender, her laptop set in front of her on the bed. He backed away silently and slipped down the stairs, he wanted a glass of water before he joined her.

"Luke?" Ray called to him quietly from where he was sitting on the couch. He hadn't moved since Julie left, just sitting and thinking.

"Oh! Ray," Luke detoured from his original course to the kitchen and walked over.

Ray tipped his head and surveyed the boy, no, the young man, in front of him for a moment. Then, he stood up and gestured Luke to follow him. He led him down the short downstairs hallway to his home office. Ray didn't use it very often, but it had a small desk and some file cabinets where he kept most of his important papers.

"Ray?" Luke was curious as to what this was about.

"I have something for you. It's not for right away, but Julie only has one more year of high school after this, and with the likelihood of you all signing a record deal tomorrow, I think it's fair to say she won't be interested in college."

"Oh," Luke frowned. "You know if she wants to go I will make sure she knows she can, right? That we can schedule the band stuff around it? Just because I didn't want to go-"

Ray straightened up and he looked startled, "No! No, that's not... College doesn't have to be for everyone. Julie wants music, she wants the band- wants _you_. She's _happy_. No, I may be firm about high school, but after that I just want her to do what's right for _her_."

"Then, what-"

But Ray has been distracted by the reminder of a nagging thought that he hadn't found time to speak to Luke about recently, even though he has wanted to.

"Luke, I think we should withdraw you from that class. It starts next week, and if we do it now you'll get a refund. You don't _really_ want to sit through an 'Intro to Marketing' class, do you?"

His eyes wide and nervous, Luke ducked his head and one hand went up to rub the back of his neck, "Um, well, I thought you said it was a good idea. Since Julie will be at school, it will give me something to do, and-"

"Stop." Ray scrubbed his hands over his face, "Luke, you _do not_ need to do it for me. When we talked about it I didn't fully understand about your parents, and now I can see how you might have, even if only subconsciously, wanted to do it to please me. But, I _do not care_ if you _never_ take a college class. You are enough just as you are, and I love who you are. We can take care of withdrawing you tomorrow morning."

Luke's eyes were glassy, " _Really?_ You won't be disappointed?"

Ray walked from behind his desk and wrapped Luke in a tight hug, "Kiddo, you could never disappoint me because of something like that. I love you, mijo."

A choked sob and Luke's arms clutching him closer was his only reply, and Ray decided he could give Luke the something they came in here for another time. Right now he had more pressing matters, like mentally cursing himself for not realizing he hadn't actually told any of the boys that he loved them before. He had told Luke he trusted him, and that he had his back, and told Willie he was there if he ever needed to talk. He had said Reggie could call him 'Dad', and he had told Alex he didn't have to hide who he was, but _he had never explicitly told them he loved them out loud_.

That was going to change immediately, and this was a good start with Luke.

Shifting in Ray's arms and lifting his head, Luke was smiling through his tears, " _Thank you_ Ray. I love you, too."

Oh. Ray's heart melted, the sincerity and _gratefulness_ pouring off the guitarist almost painful to see. 

"Um," Luke sniffled and cleared his throat as he stepped back, "So, what was it you had for me?"

Ray shook his head, "You know what? It's not important. It's not going anywhere and you won't need it for awhile anyway. Let's go make some ice cream sundaes before bed and see if there's something good to watch on TV for a little while."

A short watery laugh, "Okay Ray. I know Julie is snuggled up with Fender, so that would be nice."

They dug out all sorts of toppings and loaded up their sundaes, Ray deciding with a flash of inspiration to pull up the most recent season of 'The Voice' on Hulu. Luke loved it, and they spent a couple hours joking and happily critiquing the contestants. Ray was impressed by Luke's analysis of the songs and lyrics as well as the talent of the singers. They called it a night around 10, tomorrow was a big day, after all.

\----------------------------------------------

Ray picked up Julie and Flynn after school the next day with the boys already in the SUV. Bobby would be meeting them at the offices of Destiny Records, and Willie was home waiting for Carlos, Carrie driving herself from school and joining the two of them to hang out and make dinner. 

Bobby: _Baby are you sure you and Willie want to try to cook? You can text me and let me know if I should pick something up after, dinner for ten people is a lot._

Carrie: _Dad. It's fine. You know I can cook, even if I don't do it that often, and I'll have two helpers._

Bobby: _If you're sure..._

Carrie: _I'm sure! Jeez!_

Bobby: _Only love, baby girl!_

Carrie scoffed and rolled her eyes, dropping her phone back in her purse as the three girls reached Ray's SUV, but it was affectionate.

"Good luck! We are going to celebrate so big when you guys get home!" she hugged Flynn and waved at Julie, who had already crawled into the far back to snuggle with Luke.

"Thanks, Care!" Flynn scooted into the middle seat beside Alex.

"Thanks Carrie!" Reggie stuck his hand out the front passenger window, and she caught it with a quick encouraging squeeze, sharing a smile with him before turning to head to her own car.

\------------------------------------

"Look at this place!" Luke's hushed but excited whisper next to her made Julie grin. He was so hyped up he was almost vibrating, and Reggie, Alex, and Flynn weren't much calmer.

She wasn't sure exactly what it was, but Julie actually felt really centered and relaxed. There was a continuous buzz, however, like an electric current running under her skin, that had her feeling like she was almost glowing. She thought about what Luke had said yesterday, about her mom watching, and a warm feeling washed over her. She let go of Luke's hand and stepped into Ray's side, hugging him for a brief moment as they paused by the reception desk.

"What's that for niña?"

"I can feel Mom. This is going to be great, Papi, I'm sure of it."

Ray swallowed hard, but then felt a bit of a warm feeling graze across his shoulders, and when he closed his eyes he could picture Rose gently dragging a hand along there, the way she used to do all the time when she'd walk past him at home, _before._

"Huh, you know what, mija? I really think you're right."

He hugged Julie tight for another quick moment, then stepped up to the receptionist, who had just gotten off the phone and was now beckoning them forward with a kind smile.

"Are you Julie and the Phantoms? Here for Andi Parker?"

"Yes, that's us," Luke's beaming smile made the woman's smaller one widen in response.

"Tell your friends!" Reggie was bouncing on his toes next to Luke.

The woman (Evie, her nameplate said) efficiently handed them each a visitor's badge and gave them directions as she did so, "So, you all are going to head to the elevators right over there, go to floor 23, then take a right as you step out, go down the hallway until it splits, hang a left and then Ms. Parker's office is the third door on the left. You got all that?"

Bobby and Flynn were the only two nodding with any confidence, but Evie just handed out the last badge to Alex and shooed them off good-naturedly.

Luke almost led them the wrong way when getting off the elevator, but Bobby had actually been to see Andi here at her office before and herded everyone the correct direction.

"Wait, so you know her?" Ray questioned Bobby as they walked.

"Yeah, slightly. I collaborated with one of the writers she oversees a few years ago, she's fantastic. Every artist or writer I've ever met that she represents has nothing but praise, and it's always sincere and not forced."

"I can believe that. She had a honest feeling to her when we spoke at The Bookclub."

"There's my new band! Well, _hopefully_ ," Andi was standing at her office doorway, a bright and welcoming expression lighting up her face as she waved them inside.

\--------------------------------------- 

"So, you're Luke," she shook his hand as he walked past her, "Reggie," another handshake, "Alex... Julie... Ray, I'm so happy to see you again... and you're Flynn, I'm guessing?"

"Yes, ma'am."

Andi laughed, "No need for that, Andi is just fine. For _all_ of you," she glanced around to everyone, "And, last but not least, Bobby. It's great to see you."

Bobby froze as he shook her hand, he hadn't really started calling himself Bobby around _that_ many people again yet. How did she know?

"Come in. There are a few things I should probably mention before we begin the actual contract offer."

Ray and the others are now warily watching as Bobby stares at Andi in confusion and a little suspicion.

"First, I would like to compliment you on your new music Luke, Julie definitely adds a layer to your sound. Bobby on rhythm guitar was great, but I think things worked out the way they were meant to. Although, Julie would absolutely kill it on 'Now or Never'."

"Wh-what?" Luke managed to gasp, as all of them gaped at her in shock.

She just walked around her desk and gracefully sat down, crossing her legs as she leaned back in her chair, "I grew up here. And I was first introduced to 'Sunset Curve' at my Mom's weekly book club. Oh, I was only 10, and way too shy to come downstairs, but I loved your music. You always talked about becoming legends and being connected to people through your music, Luke especially, and it inspired me."

"Wh-what?" Luke could only repeat himself.

"I grew up loving music because of you guys, and I worked hard, and I built... _this_ ," she waved her arms out in an all-encompassing gesture.

The penny dropped for Bobby first, he was peripherally aware of Destiny Records after all, but this had been something that was not advertised at all, "It's all yours isn't it? Destiny Records is _your_ label, you're not just a talent scout and rep, you're the _boss_!"

"Guilty as charged! Obviously I don't tell everyone, and there's a lot of paperwork and everything to help distract from it, the industry even now is still extremely sexist, but yes it's all mine. And it's all because of you guys."

"Wh-what?" Luke looked ready to pass out, Reggie and Alex not looking much better, and Ray's dad instincts kicked in.

"Maybe we should all sit down?" he rested a hand on Luke's shoulder and prodded him over and down into one of the chairs arranged in front of Andi's desk.

Julie and Flynn just numbly followed the suggestion as well, having been struck silent by the bombshell that had just been dropped. Julie took the chair right next to Luke, reaching out and hugging his left arm into her.

"Ar-aren't you freaked out that we're not dead?" Alex was so stunned he hadn't even gone into a panic, collapsing onto a chair of his own as the question left his lips.

"And that we're not old?" Reggie sat down slowly, but he just had a feeling this was all going to turn out okay.

Bobby was upset now, though, and a little angry, "What do you want? Make them sign or else? This isn't funny Andi."

Andi snapped her head up to stare at Bobby in surprise, "What?! No!" Her face crumpled in distress, "Oh, no, I've messed this all up, haven't I? Please let me try to explain better." She met each of their eyes with her own pleading ones.

"It's okay. We'll listen," Ray spoke cautiously, "You said they inspired you, so I think you probably don't want to hurt them and we can give you the benefit of the doubt at least long enough to hear what you have to say."

"Thank you," her voice was small but grew excited when she continued, "So, you inspired me and I'm _so_ grateful. I didn't recognize you right away, not at Eats n' Beats, but I did some research after because I couldn't help but think there was something familiar about you. Finally it clicked when Julie's 'Tell your friends!' popped into my head, and I dug out my old CDs, I found the Sunset Curve demo I had after begging my mom to ask you for one, and _boom,_ there you guys were. You looked exactly the same as in the photos on the CD insert."

"So didn't that freak you out? Make you think you were crazy?" Flynn was enthralled now, she knew how she had felt finding out about the ghost boys, back when they were still ghosts, and, well, yikes. The world would want to commit all of them to rooms with padded walls if they heard this story. 

"Honestly? Yeah, for a minute. But my grandpa came back as a ghost for awhile. He passed away from a stroke when I was in college, and I lost my motivation, got depressed. We had been really close and he's the one that left me the money I needed to start this company. I didn't want any of it then, though, I wanted him back. And suddenly there he was. He hung around, encouraged me, and helped me study. The day this place fully got off the ground, he gave me a big smile and a hug, told me he was proud of me, that he'd see me again eventually, and he crossed over."

A disbelieving silence was the only response, even as Andi glanced around in anticipation.

"Why do you think I named it _Destiny_ Records?"

"How many ghosts _are_ there around?!" Alex burst out, his breathing speeding up.

"Alex!" Bobby was at his side in a second, kneeling in front of his chair and holding his hands out for Alex to grab and hold onto. "Breathe with me buddy, come on, I got you."

Andi looked on, brown eyes filled with concern, "I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to upset him."

Alex focused on Bobby and slowly gathered himself, an expression of gratitude sent to Bobby in thanks.

Ray closed his eyes and sighed, this was _not_ what he expected for this meeting. His head shot up at a repeat of the warm feeling grazing across his shoulders from earlier, and he could once again picture Rose gently dragging her hand across them, this time with an amused but encouraging smile.

"Just to recap, and hopefully get things back on track, you know they died, you figured out they were ghosts, you seem to know they're alive again, and you still want to sign them to your label?" Ray attempted to clarify and confirm with Andi.

"Absolutely. After my grandpa, I can't _not_ be open to crazy things like this. Besides, how beautifully ironic would it be to sign the band, or most of it, that inspired the idea for the label in the first place 25 years ago? My dream wouldn't exist without them, and now I can be the one to make their dream come true. Everything coming full-circle."

"This is bigger than signs. This _is_ like destiny or something," Flynn whispered in awe.

"Could we have a moment in private to discuss things, Andi?" Bobby spoke up, not wanting them to jump into anything.

Andi nodded and smoothly stood up, moving to the door, "Of course. And, I actually would rather you didn't immediately sign today. Take the contract home, go over it for the next few days, _then_ let me know. I want things to be a partnership with my artists, not just me being in charge for every tiny thing. Heck, I run the company, I don't have _time_ to micromanage!"

She smiled and closed the door behind her. 

\-------------------

"So, what do we think?" Luke asked, still trying to process everything.

"I think it's perfect," Flynn shrugged. "She literally knows your secrets and she doesn't care. She's even grateful to you." A smirk. "Not to mention how _badass_ it is that she's the boss around here!"

"I agree!" Reggie grinned and bounced in his seat, "We won't have to hide anything, or worry about saying the wrong thing to her!"

"I can't argue it would be nice to have someone else we don't have to be careful around," Alex lifted a shoulder in a half-shrug himself.

Luke turned to Julie, "Jules? What do you think?"

She took a deep breath and smiled at him, then at everyone else, "As much as her story surprised me, I feel really good about her, about this. I kinda feel my mom, it feels like she approves. So I say we take the contract and go over it, but unless there's anything crazy, I think it's going to be a yes for me."

\---------------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well. That happened. I have ideas, but I'm iffy on the transition from this to my next plot point so it might take a little while. 
> 
> Also, I just found out I'm getting promoted at work! It's not finalized yet, but might be by the end of the week! It does mean I will have to do a lot of training, so I might be pretty tired. Please forgive me if the next part takes a hot minute!


	51. Part Cinquante-Un

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Misc. Then some Reggie and Ray time, and some cuteness with Luke and Carlos.

Part Cinquante-un

\-----------------------------

Carrie and Carlos were stunned at the idea that Andi had had a ghost of her own, but Willie was a little bit less surprised.

"I mean, usually I only knew the ghosts that joined the Club, but I did see other ghosts out and about occasionally. Caleb was always suggesting I invite any new ones I saw to come and see the Club, in case they might want to join. Some I spoke to and did invite, but he didn't always stamp them, when I first joined it really was only the ones that agreed and wanted to be there. You were the first I brought that he was so interested in, probably because of what he thought you could give him, since being able to be seen when playing with Julie hinted at power he was desperate to control."

"Yay, how lucky for us," Alex's tone was flat and sarcastic.

Willie shrunk in his seat at the dinner table, "I'm really sorry Alex."

"What? Oh, no, that wasn't- I didn't mean-" Alex reached out to grasp Willie's hand firmly with his own. "I forgave you, I'm not mad at _you_. That was for _Caleb_ ," he spit the name out with venom dripping from his tone, "It's _his_ fault, not yours."

The whole table hummed in agreement, and Willie relaxed again. 

Bobby spoke up to change the subject, "So, I figure we can read the contract after dinner, then I can have my lawyer go over it tomorrow, just as a precaution, and let Andi know on Saturday. What do you guys think?

"That sounds good to me, and I'm with Julie, if there isn't anything crazy, I really want to say yes. I like Andi, she seems like a good person," Reggie looked around and was pleased to see Alex and Luke nodding along.

Ray clapped his hands once in a tiny burst of excitement and grinned, "Great! I can't believe it only took one song at Eats n' Beats, and then one actual set and you kids have done it!" He laughed for a moment and shrugged, "Actually, no, I _can_ believe it. You're all amazing, and this is only the beginning of what I know you can do and how far you can go."

\----------------------------

The contract turned out to be just what was promised, Bobby even commenting about how it gave the band more creative freedom and control of their career than any he had seen before. When they spoke to Andi and went in to sign all the paperwork, she once again reiterated that for the most part she wanted to be their partner, not their boss or babysitter. 

"It's one of the perks of it being my company. I have veto power before offers are extended, and artists that can handle themselves are almost the number one thing I look for. Obviously, they still need the talent, but that's pretty useless to me if they don't want to put in the work and take responsibility for themselves and their career."

Bobby, Alex, and Reggie snickered loudly at that, looking at Luke. _He_ never had a problem working hard and taking responsibility for moving the band forward, back in the '90s _or_ now. Luke just ducked his head and lifted a hand to rub the back of his neck as he tried to ignore the looks and the heat flooding his cheeks at the subtle teasing.

"That won't be an issue," Julie beamed at him and squeezed his other hand, the memory of his pep talk in her kitchen right after she met him coming to mind. He peeked over at her and bit his lip against a sheepish smile.

Andi hid a grin of her own, she had overheard a few of his pep talks to the other boys at her mom's book club, and also his plan for them to be legends. "Anyway, I am so happy to welcome you all to the Destiny Records family!" she stood from her desk and came around to shake their hands. Reggie was last and surprised her with a hug instead. She patted his back, smiling and unable to resist the infectious sunshine of his personality as he stepped back, bouncing in place and grinning at her in delight.

\------------------------------

It was now getting close to the end of January, and they had started to make plans for recording, but actual scheduling had been pushed off until Julie would be out of school for the summer. Instead they were writing and practicing, and Andi had scheduled them some gigs in clubs around the area, a few over the next few months until summer break.

Reggie arrived home from his mid-morning photography class, going right over to the Molina's. They had withdrawn Luke from his college class, but Reggie had decided to stick with his 'Intro to Photography', and he was really enjoying it. It had only been a few classes so far (Mondays and Wednesdays, 10:00 to 11:45am), but he went and chatted with Ray after each of them.

The boys had fallen into a system of sharing one-on-one time with Ray, Luke and Reggie spending the most time alone with him. Luke tended to hang out with him some afternoons and evenings, sometimes with Julie, or on his own when she was busy with homework. All the boys spent time with Carlos, too, but he had different after school activities and he still went to his friends' houses, so it mostly depended on him.

Bobby had taken to stopping by for lunch with Ray occasionally as well, sometimes the boys would join and sometimes not. He and Ray had found that, as much as they loved the boys, it was nice to have some time to talk to another adult about things, and for Ray to talk a little about Rose since Bobby had known her too.

Ray had taken Reggie along to a photo shoot or two, and they would talk about cameras and cooking when they hung out. Ray had gotten much more interested in recipes and food than he ever had been before. Luke and he would talk about everything, and they were now fully obsessed with 'The Voice', having binged the whole first season together over a few days, they were now working through the second season. Luke was obviously spoiler free, having been dead, and Ray hadn't paid much attention when it was on. Almost every night before bed, they would watch an episode or two together.

But today was a Reggie day (a Monday), and he was excited to gush to Ray about the new things they had gone over in his class, about composition and how to frame subjects in their photos. He found Ray sitting at the table and staring into space, with a cup of coffee in front of him. 

"Hi Dad! Guess what we talked about in class today?" Reggie bounded over and slipped into the seat across from him, looking at him expectantly.

"Uh, um," Ray blinked and his eyes refocused, "Reggie, hi."

The bassist's excitement fell away as he took a harder look at the man in front of him, "Is something bothering you?"

Ray sighed and went to take a sip of coffee pulling back immediately and grimacing, "Yuck, cold." He jerked his head up and tilted it, "Wait, are you already done with class? It's only 11, isn't it?"

"No," Reggie shook his head slowly in concern, "I just finished class and came over, it's a little after noon, Dad."

"Huh."

"Are you okay?"

Another sigh and Ray stood to dump out his coffee and pour a new cup, "I suppose it's better to mention it now."

"What? Dad- Ray? You're kinda freaking me out," Reggie pulled the cuffs of his flannel over his hands as he started to fidget nervously.

"Oh, Reg, no! It's not about you, or the guys or anything," he abandoned his coffee cup and came over to pull Reggie up from his chair into a hug, which was readily returned. 

"It's just- well, the anniversary is coming up," Ray's voice dropped to a pained and choked whisper, "It will be a year since we lost Rose."

"Oh, Dad!" Reggie hugged him tighter, "What day? How can we be there for you guys? What can we do to support you?"

"I don't know, I don't really know how to do this. Julie basically stopped singing when her mom was diagnosed and started treatment, only singing for Rose a tiny bit, no one else. When she finally sang again it had been almost a year since Carlos and I had really heard her, _anyone_ had heard her, and... I can't do that again. What if she slides back?"

Reggie gave him a reassuring squeeze within the hug, his voice matter-of-fact, "Not gonna happen. Not with us around. Not with _Luke_ around."

Ray blew out a deep breath and pulled back, "Thank you Reggie. I really needed to hear that."

"So... when _is_ the day?" Reggie asked softly.

"The 23rd, so this weekend. Thankfully it's a Saturday, although I may let Julie and Carlos stay home from school on Friday just because I don't know how much they'll be able to pay attention in class, or how emotional it's really going to be."

"Okay, we can always hang around, or we can leave you guys alone? Well, probably not Luke..."

The older man gave a snort and a short chuckle at that, "There's _nothing_ that would keep Luke from being there for Julie, unless she specifically asked him for space. And the chances of _that_ are about the same as him never wearing a sleeveless shirt ever again."

Reggie definitely couldn't help but laugh at that too, shaking his head and surveying Ray, "Are you a little better now?"

"Yeah, yeah Reggie. I _am_ better. Thanks to you, mijo," he hugged him again quickly and turned to get his coffee cup, "So, what were you saying about your class today?"

\-----------------------------------

Ray had asked Reggie to mention the anniversary to Alex and Willie, just to give them a heads up. He wasn't sure how well he was going to hold up, and he gave a anguished mental thanks to Rose that the boys were there. He knew if things got difficult for him, Reggie and the others would step in and help be there for Carlos and Julie.

Reggie headed home for a mid-afternoon nap around 2:30, he had decided he liked them on days he had class. When Luke came in from the studio with Fender, Ray waved him over to sit with him at the table, right where Reggie had previously been.

"Hey, Ray," Luke beamed at him as he sat down, laying a leather-bound dark blue journal carefully to the side on the table. Fender trotted over to nudge Ray's leg and ask for petting, which he obviously received. 

"Hi Luke, new song?" Ray asked, nodding towards the journal.

"Uh, yeah, I- yeah," Luke's right hand was up rubbing the back of his neck and his left went to cover the journal protectively.

Ray raised an eyebrow, curious at the reaction, and his eyes fell on the journal again, "Wait, is that...?"

Luke flushed and looked down.

"It is! That's your Julie journal!" he leaned in, "Has she even _seen_ it?"

"I- no, no she hasn't," Luke's eyes were soft as he stared down at the notebook, fingers now tracing lightly over the cover. "Since I have so much free time when she's at school, I can write anything and everything down when it comes to me. She makes me a better writer for our songs, but I can't help all the lyrics and melodies that are always filling my head that I _have_ to get out."

"Are there some finished songs in there? Do you think you'll ever do anything with them?"

The guitarist shrugged, "They don't fit our sound, so I don't know if they'll ever make it further than being written down in here, but..." he shrugged again, "Who knows?"

"Well, you better go get that back to it's hiding spot, Julie will be home from school in about an hour. And, I kinda want to talk to you about this weekend," he gave Luke a serious look.

"I'll put it away and be right back," with a solemn nod Luke stood up, disappearing up the stairs for a few short minutes before reappearing and slipping back into his seat, "Now, what's the plan for this weekend?" 

\--------------------------

The days leading up to the anniversary weekend were surprisingly not too awful. Ray was very pleased to see that although Julie was quiet, she was not as subdued as he expected. Reggie, Alex, and Willie were good at distracting Carlos, and he even sought Luke out at one point.

It was when Julie went to the mall after school on Thursday with Flynn and Carrie, they wanted to go to the same salon as before Christmas, get pampered a little and just spend some girl time with Julie before the difficult weekend. This left Luke at home, tinkering with his guitar part for a new song he and Julie were working on.

"Luke?" Carlos lingered in the doorway of the studio, hesitant.

Looking up from his guitar, Luke smiled at the younger boy, "Hey little buddy. Come on in, what's up?"

Carlos bit his lip and took a couple steps forward, "Are- are you busy?"

Luke furrowed his brow at the uncertainty in his voice and he set his guitar in the stand, standing up to catch Carlos's hand and pull him over to the couch to sit down, "Hey. I am never too busy if you need something. What's on your mind?"

"I just... I miss my mom," the younger boy's brown eyes filled with tears that he tried to blink away.

"Oh, Carlos. It's okay to cry, buddy," Luke couldn't say he hadn't expected this when he saw the boy in the doorway, but he hadn't expected the way his heart would crack open seeing his tears. He reached out and wrapped his arms around Carlos, tugging him into his lap and pressing his head into his shoulder, the little boy's arms grasping around Luke's middle as he let go and shook with sobs.

"I got you little buddy," Luke sighed, wishing he could do something to ease the grief of this family that had made him and the boys so welcome and safe. He started humming and then softly singing, hoping it would be comforting to the boy he now considered his little brother.

_Nobody knows how to say goodbye_  
_It seems so easy 'til you try_  
_Then the moments passed you by_  
_Nobody knows how to say goodbye_

_Nobody knows how to get back home_  
_And we set out so long ago_  
_Search the heavens and the Earth below_  
_Nobody knows how to get back home_

_Through the darkness to the dawn_  
_And when I looked back you were gone_  
_Heard your voice leading me on_  
_Through the darkness to the dawn_

_Love is deep as the road is long_  
_And moves my feet to carry on_  
_It beats my heart when you are gone_  
_Love is deep as the road is long_

_Nobody knows how the story ends_  
_Live the day, doing what you can_  
_This is only where it began_  
_Nobody knows how the story ends_  
_Nobody knows how the story ends_

By the time he finished Carlos had cried himself to sleep, so Luke maneuvered a bit and picked him up, planning to take him inside and up the stairs to his bed. 

Ray looked up from where he was finishing some work at the table, his eyes widening a bit, and whispering when Luke put a quick finger to his lips. "Is he okay?"

"He'll be fine, think he just needed a good cry, I'm going to put him in bed and sit with him. Will you call us when dinner is ready?"

"Yeah, of course," a beat, "Hey Luke? Thank you."

Luke had paused at the stairs, glancing back he just nodded and adjusted his grip slightly before carrying Carlos up to his room.

\----------------------

When Julie came home and went to look for Luke, she found him in Carlos's room, curled up around her little brother. There were tiny traces of tear tracks on Carlos's now peaceful face, and Luke looked like he was trying to shield him from the world, the same way he tended to hold her. It was one of the most heart-melting things she had ever seen.

"Julie?" Ray walked up behind her and let out a quiet gasp as he looked over her head into the room, "Oh, it's even cuter than when he was carrying him up the stairs."

"He- what?" Julie turned her head to him and then back to the boys.

"I think Carlos went to him out in the studio, he was asleep when Luke carried him back in. Luke said he thought he just 'needed a good cry' and he was 'going to put him in bed and sit with him.' He obviously fell asleep too."

"Ohhh," Julie put a hand over her heart, looking at the bed and smiling with pure love and affection.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song: 'Nobody Knows' - The Lumineers
> 
> I did get the job/promotion, so I've been starting some training. :)
> 
> I decided to not try to force myself to write during the week if I wasn't feeling it, but I actually wrote a bunch. Just... none of it is the next part exactly? I have three big sections of story, but they don't fit until after the anniversary, so *shrug*. At least they are pretty ready to go when I do get there?
> 
> I do have a little written for the next chapter, so we'll see how fast I get the rest of that done!


End file.
